The Dragon of Light
by targaryenemperor
Summary: For hundreds of years, Saulot and Tremere fought a terrible battle, not just a spiritual but a philosophical one. But now, after so much time, the Salubri Antediluvian seems to win it. What influence will this momentous event have on the lives of both Kine and Kindred? I do not own VtM. I decided to portray Saulot as the kind vampire because the Kindred need a bit of kindness :)
1. The Choice

He could not remember the last time he saw the sun, the yellow orb in the daylight's sky that gives both life and death… Life for humans and death for those like him, those who call themselves Kindred. The last thing he remembered, actually, was the taste of blood on his lips and an inner fire that gave him imaginable pleasure, something worth dying for, or worse. There are worse things than death and he was experiencing one himself, for hundreds of years. Now, he was awake, one of the few moments of consciousness he had, a moment in which he was not in a spiritual fight with the other one. Or maybe he was! Maybe this awakening was nothing more than a cruel prank, maybe the other one let him become awake only to consume him. But it felt good to be awake…

The room felt so alien to him, even though it was his ancestral home, probably an effect of his long torpor. After he and his disciples achieved their immortality, their rebirth in the night, they moved here, building this nervous center in which his people's abilities were honed, turning them into the highly mysterious and incredibly powerful clan Tremere. He left his coffin and walked slowly around the room. He wanted to go outside, to feel the night's air on his skin again. Who would have thought that something so simple, so mundane could be something he will want so much?

 _Dreaming of air?_

He smiled. It was too good to be true. For a minute, he thought he will escape the other one, but he was so strong…

 _Yes. You do not?_

 _Yes, but I can't feel it anymore, because of you._

The other one… his name meant something for every vampire in the world. Something different. Some would call him sire, others murderer. Some would call him saint, others demon. Some of them call him Dragon, others Warlord. But he called him Saulot, the other one, the nightmare, his greatest mistake. Since his lips touched Saulot's blood, Tremere gained immense power, but at such a cost. For hundreds of years the Antediluvian's soul and his are fighting a terrible fight, both spiritual and philosophical. Saulot was a scholar, as much as Tremere was, maybe even more. This is one of the myriad of reasons that enabled him to want to gain his power, his insight, his knowledge… his blood. But then, he discovered that he shared his body and mind with Saulot, who wanted nothing more than to gain control.

 _Tell me, mage, how it is to be awake again?_

He hated to respond to Saulot, but Tremere felt compelled to answer him. It is incredibly strange, but Saulot, for all those years, has been a… friend? Someone who knew the yearnings of Tremere's heart.

 _Strange._

 _It is not strange. Imagine how the moon must look like, how the stars shine like thousands of candles that illuminate the night, giving us monsters the impression of being in the daylight again._

It was torture for Tremere. When he was just a mage, he couldn't care less for such things but now… He would give anything to be human again, to walk again under the sun, to enjoy the taste of food and the touch of another human like him. But Saulot was right, they were monsters. Himself more than any, for the diablerist is cursed in the eyes of both God and Kindred. Tremere's forehead started to hurt and his third eye opened, but its light was not warm and pleasant like Saulot's but cold, emanating rancidness and pain.

 _Tell me, mage, now that you are awaken, what will you do?_

Good question. What he could possibly do? Guide his clan again? Saulot would probably try to influence his decisions, without any doubt. It would be a struggle, if anything. The only thing he could do was to try to enhance the power of the wards that kept the Antediluvian contained, hoping to reduce his influence even for a bit. He concentrated and summoned one of his greatest allies, Etrius.

"Master, you are awake!"

Etrius fell on his knees in front of Tremere.

 _Sycophant._

Saulot's voice pulsated inside his head, scarring Tremere's soul with every syllable. But his words had some merit, if not anything else.

"My loyal companion, I have need of your help. I can't hold him any longer. I feel him crawling out, taking control, flooding me with his wretched light!"

"Master, the wards, are they weakening?"

"They are challenged by his power, but they are holding out, but for how long?"

"Yes, Master. I will start the ritual right away, but as you know, I need three nights to complete the formula, and the blood of a pure being, untouched by sin or imperfection!"

Three nights! Three nights of desperation!

"Do what you must!"

Etrius, the guardian of his body, left and Tremere was left alone again… well, not alone!

 _I have a question for you, mage. Answer me and I swear that I will leave you alone for the night!_

 _What question?_

 _What would you choose? Cold light or warm darkness?_

 _It's this a riddle?_

 _It is what you choose to be!_

 _Cold light… But what are you…?_

Suddenly, he felt the presence of Saulot returning to the deep subconscious of his mind, for a moment, he was free.


	2. Seven Lights

The next night, Tremere decided to leave the bowels of the Vienna chantry to see the moonlight. He needed to see it or… maybe Saulot is influencing his decisions for him. A horrendous thought. Especially that during the day, he rested. The Dragon appeared only once or twice in his mind but he said nothing.

The chantry was full of vampires who shared the blood of Tremere, or at least the one he stole. Locked eternally into a social pyramid like students who sabotage and destroy each other's work just to impress their dark teachers. Some of them did not recognize the Founder by sight, but they felt in their blood that they were in the presence of majesty itself. The older vampires however bowed in a reverential manner at Tremere, as he walked the corridors of the chantry towards the courtyard. He reached for the handle of the door and went outside. He felt dizzy, like in a feverish dream. Tremere looked towards the nighttime sky and saw the beauty of the stars who flickered. A cricket was singing its song in a nearby bush. For a human, its chirping was nothing more than a simple sound in nature but for the ear of a vampire, especially an old vampire, it was melody. For the first time in so many years, Tremere felt good. But what if this state of good was only the influence of Saulot? This question turned every moment into agony. Tremere was afraid that every step he took, every gesture he made was only a part of the Warlord's plan. But now, he just enjoyed the evening.

 _So… human of you._

 _Leave me be!_

 _You know I can't do it, and I won't do it. You ruined too much for too many to deserve respite._

 _I just tried to obtain power and knowledge._

 _Yes, the cold light that you chose instead of the warm darkness._

He now understood the question Saulot asked of him the other night. After a few minutes, a van entered the courtyard and two Ghouls produced a sleeping young boy from behind the rear doors.

 _Yes, my fuel for the ritual… Soon…_

 _Are you that obsessed with sealing me away knowing that eventually I will return that you are willing to sacrifice a child?_

 _What is it to such as we? It is just a kine, no more than that. And kine's meaning on this earth is that: to nourish us, their betters. Or at least me, for you are nothing more than a displaced soul, existing like a parasite inside my body, a parasite I will soon expunge._

 _We shall see…_

Saulot's warning made Tremere tremble, even though the mage refused to acknowledge it. The Dragon certainly had a plan, but what could possibly do? For now, he is just a voice in his head. What harm can a voice do to him?

The third night came. Tremere was ready: dressed in a beautifully woven red robe, having a medallion with his clan around his neck. Proudly and confidently, he walked towards the ritual chamber in the deepest cellar of the chantry.

There, Etrius has drawn in blood an immense ritual formula on the floor and twelve candles burned in a circle around it. In the middle of the drawing, the child from the other night was tied, naked and unconscious on a cross.

 _Such depravity…_

 _You don't like it, Antediluvian? I thought your kind dabbled into such pleasures with an immense gusto. Are you so devoid of feelings that you cannot enjoy the sweet taste of a young kine? This is my gift for you, before I send you away. Enjoy it!_

Etrius murmured a litany in a ritual language known so well by Tremere, that he seemed to have an orgasm just by hearing every syllable of it, if that could be possible for vampires.

 **I call upon the energies of the otherworldly realm: restore what was broken, remake what has been unmade!**

Tremere felt the moment was upon him. The second the kine's blood will enter his body, Saulot will vanish in his immaterial prison inside him and be locked there for a very long time.

 **May his sacrifice deliver my master! May his innocence remake my master! May his life support my master!**

Finally, after so much time… Saulot became unbearable, almost impossible to contain.

 **May his blood fuel my master with the energy of a thousand stars!**

Etrius then extended his hand towards Tremere.

"Now it's the time, Master. Drink from him and be rid of the Antediluvian!"

Tremere entered the ritual circle and kneeled before the boy.

 _If you do this, you will be damned forever, mage!_

 _And if I don't do this, I will be damned forever by your presence!_

With one swoop, Tremere bit the boy's neck, draining him of his blood with the rapacity of a baby on the breast. The child awoken from his sleep and screamed loudly. Soon after, he fainted, dying. Tremere felt the blood like pure, liquid ecstasy, at the same level with the moment he diablerized Saulot. The ritual continued with Etrius singing an unholy chant. The boy's body started to darken rapidly.

 _Now you are truly lost._

 _I defeated you, Antediluvian. Go back to your prison._

 _Ah, but this is where you are mistaken._

Suddenly, the third eye in Tremere's forehead opened and generated a bright, white light that almost blinded Etrius.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, MASTER, THE RITUAL MUST NOT BE INTERRUPTED!"

The body of the child returned to the normal color, to the horror of both vampires in the ritual room. A peaceful air surrounded him and he arose, alive and well. Etrius was livid, even more than his vampiric appearance.

"What…?"

Tremere started to shook violently.

"Master, the kine has been blemished by death and now he is back to life… The ritual has been disrupted!"

 _No, it can't be!_

 _Unfortunately, he will die again soon. It seems that your lapdog's ritual was more potent that I believed. But do not worry, mage. Now, you are the parasite._

Tremere opened his eyes and vomited an ethereal substance, dark as night and extremely cold to be close to. Etrius was shocked:

"Master, are you…?"

"I'm fine, Etrius. I am more than fine!"

Suddenly, the substance grew a voice:

"Don't… listen to him! Is HE!"

"What?"

Tremere, or at least Tremere's body, approached Etrius and smiled. It was clear that the air around him was extremely different.

"Do not worry, mage. I expunged the evil inside me!"

"Oh no..."

Etrius took a knife from his robe and stabbed Tremere with it in the heart. The founder of the clan didn't flinch.

"Useless. Now, I suppose I should go. Thank you for the new lease on life, mage. If you excuse me."

Tremere picked up the child who was breathing difficultly and left the ritual room. Etrius tried to follow but was interrupted by the ethereal substance's voice:

"FOOL! I can't live like this for long! I need a vessel or I will be vanquished!"

"Master!"

"Take me inside you! At least until I recover my body!"

"It's an honor, master…"

"NOW!"

Vienna was beautiful and the Danube was so brilliant under the moonlight. Tremere's body, now inhabited by Saulot, arrived in a park in the middle of the city with the child used in the ritual, who was clad in the robe worn by the vampire. He was clearly ill. Even though he was resurrected, his soul was already scarred. Saulot could not Embrace the child as he was currently in Tremere's body but he could at least offer him succor until he could find a solution to truly help him. Saulot focused for a bit and then, using the powers of Auspex, he found out everything he needed to know about the boy. His name was Johann and he was a music prodigy, a child so talented that even though he was no more than seven, he was sought after by many conservatoires all across Europe. Saulot smiled:

 _Maybe you will sing something to me once you wake up! My Discipline of Obeah will keep you stable until I can use my other powers._

Saulot, with Johann in his arms, continued to walk for hours, thinking. It felt good to finally be able to walk, even though is in other person's body. But Tremere had it coming, after what he has done in the past. Now, Saulot is free and Tremere needs to possess someone quickly in order to remain alive. The Salubri Antediluvian heard the big clock tower in the middle of the park announcing that the sun will soon rise. He smiled and, after using his Celerity, arrived quickly on the top of the tower, facing east.

 _Long time no see, friend…_

The sun was slowly rising, emanating a beautiful light, full of life and energy. Saulot's entire being shuddered watching this beautiful display, forbidden to other vampires. After a few more minutes, the sun was up and its light illuminated the pale skin of Tremere's body.

 _It is time._

The eye in the forehead opened again and sent a ray of light so bright than it was almost like a second sun in the sky.

 **Sao Paulo, Brazil**

An old man, with long white hair and an even whiter beard read a book, deep into the basement of an old library.

 _What is this… This light?_

 **Bucharest, Romania**

Finally, after secretly healing children all night in a hospital, she went to her coffin in the basement. But something kept her from resting. A light, a beacon of hope.

 _It can't be…_

 **Zapata, Texas, United States**

The Tzimisce tortured the man the entire night. He didn't manage to break him, but he is frail and mortal, he will break immediately, when he will have to face the… Vicissitudes of life. His guest was disgusted but it was the Tzimisce's house, so… However, both of them felt a light… A light of hope.

 _What is this?_

 _I don't know._

 **Cologne, Germany**

"Hey, Gabriel, what do you think? Should we leave him for the sunrise or we burn him right now?"

"Well, let's end him right now. Nobody needs a Salubri soul drinker here!"

A light however illuminated the night's sky and burned the two vampires to a crisp, leaving only ashes behind them.

The tattooed vampire looked towards the sky in awe:

 _It's you!_

 **Shanghai, China**

She awaked from her coffin, but… It is day! She was afraid at first but then, she understood…

 _You are back!_

 **Paris, France**

"It was a miracle of God! Of Dieu! My mother was full of tumors, but she prayed to God and now she is healthy!"

The Salubri closed the TV, smiling. It is better for the humans to think this. It is good to have hope. He then looked on the window of his apartment:

 _I can't believe it!_

 **Lisbon, Portugal**

"Umm… Mr. Costa, sorry to disrupt your sleep but Joao coughs again and you said that to find you if that happens, even if it's night."

"No problem. Hey, little man!"

The baby was feverish and coughed. Costa took him to another room and feigned that he gave him some drops. Instead, he used his Obeah to cleanse the boy of his ailment. The light approached him.

 _So this is how it is…_

Seven places, seven vampires, seven Salubri. Saulot's clan was scattered all across the world but now, there was a chance. For redemption, for peace, for salvation. Tremere's body was burned by the sun and in its place, a long haired, blond and blue eyed vampire stood tall and proud in the light of the sun.

 _Assemble, my children. It's time for us to do the work of good into the world of men and after thousands of years, the sons of Caine and the sons of Seth will learn to accept each other, forever._


	3. Signs Of Things To Come

**Cologne, Germany**

"Gehenna is really upon us…"

A well-dressed vampire with light brown hair started to walk around in a luxurious room of a penthouse in Cologne. Another vampire, a woman, stood on a sofa, dressed in a beautiful blue gown.

"You sound like one of those Sabbat fellows. Gehenna this, Gehenna that… Calm down. There must be an explanation for this."

"What explanations, Lydia? My guys had that Salubri trapped and suddenly, the sun appears in the middle of the fucking night sky?"

Lydia Schmidt, the Ventrue Princess of Cologne was unfazed:

"Well, it could be one of the Soul Drinkers' Disciplines. Definitely not something to be worried about. I already declared a Blood Hunt on him. It is a matter of time until he is destroyed."

"It's not just him. Our sources in South America informed us of the same phenomenon. In Eastern Europe is the same. In Asia the same. It's a pattern and if we cannot find the source of this force, I'm afraid for our existences."

"Calm down, Petras."

Petras is a particularly strange individual. A powerful Toreador, he turned his human children and wife into Ghouls after he was embraced by a Methuselah named Tiber in southern Italy almost five hundred years ago. Since then, he became an influential member of the Camarilla and was at one point the Prince of Rome. A courageous and intelligent man, Petras's only fear was the destruction of his wife and children. After making enemies in Rome, he left with them and wandered Europe until he was granted sanctuary in Cologne.

"I will not allow something like this to happen. I am sorry, Lydia, but your inactivity forces me to intervene. I will seek out Carsten!"

"The Malkavian? Are you really that desperate?"

Petras left without saying another word. He reached a limousine that was parked in the front of the building and ordered the driver to go to an abandoned hospital near the suburbia. He entered the dilapidated building which smelled horrendous, but it was a small sacrifice to pay. He will brave through this hellhole if that is what it takes to hear Carsten's insight on this problem.

Carsten was a mystery to his Camarilla compatriots. He arrived in the city only 4 years ago, claiming that he was a childe of Malkav himself. Such a claim is madness in itself but after he predicted several events that happened in Cologne, Carsten seemed to really have the power of a Methuselah. Like every member of his clan, he is mad and his ailment is the fact that he has hallucinations every night, visions of the past, present and the future. He is usually left to his own devices but the price of staying in the city is to help his allies with whenever they need. After just a few more steps, Petras entered into a room which in the past has been an operation room. There, a bald man with mismatched eyes and a huge grin on his face awaited him.

"Hello, Petras!"

"Carsten. You probably know why I am here!"

"Certainly. Come, sit here."

He pointed to a dirty mattress on the floor. Petras obeyed the Malkavian and sat down.

"It's about those goons of yours. They cornered one of the Unicorns and then they went out in a blaze of glory!"

"It's not the time to be ironic. What was that light?"

"Oh… the light! The light that strikes fear in the hearts of vampires all around the world. Good, evil, kine, Kindred, everybody will be affected by it, in one way or another."

"But… what is the source of this light? What is this phenomenon? It's a Discipline?"

"Too many questions… so little time! Ask me only one question and I will answer to you truthfully."

"Fine, Malkavian. Tell me, what is the source of the light?"

"God."

Petras started to laugh:

"God? Is that your answer? God? Are you telling me that this thing that kills Kindred is actually a… weapon of God?"

"Not a weapon, for it does not bring death. It brings life!"

"Life? It killed two of my men. Where is the life in all of that?"

"I didn't say it was life for us."

"Then?"

"Too many questions. Leave me, Petras. And be careful. This world as you know it is about to change radically."

Petras left Carsten without saying another word. The mad vampire closed his eyes and focused, connecting to the Cobweb, the grand psychic tapestry that connects every Malkavian in existence. He heard his brothers and sisters' whispers and realized that every Malkavian was aware of this light and its meaning.

 **Vienna, Austria**

"Gaaaagh! Aaaaagh!"

Etrius' cries were so powerful that shattered every crystal glassware in the room. Sharing the body with his master, Tremere, was hell itself. Is this what his master had to endure for hundreds of years? Or, as Saulot was an Antediluvian, the pain was even greater?

 _Etrius, calm down. Listen to me, stop crying and listen._

 _Yes, Master!_

 _I must find a body powerful enough to sustain me. My original one was destroyed, I sensed it. Burned by the sun!_

 _That means… Saulot killed himself only to destroy your body, master?_

 _No… he is alive._

 _In the sun?_

 _In the sun._

 _I will help you, master, but the pain is too great!_

 _Pull yourself together, we have work to do. We need another sacrifice, one untainted!_

 _I will call upon the Sewer Rats to aid us!_

 _Do this. We have to work fast._

A few moments later, Etrius managed to regain a bit of control over his actions and called a Ghoul in his office.

"Go to the meeting place and summon those filthy Nosferatu here, I have a job for them."

"Yes, my lord!"

 **Sao Paulo, Brazil**

In the basement of the Metropolitan Cathedral of Sao Paulo, a gathering of Sabbat vampires analyzed the strange occurrence.

"It is as it was foretold! A light will come and save the Cainites!"

Vinicius Proenca's raving was ill received by Bishop Daniel Kuglitz.

"Nonsense. It is the light of God that cleanses the pestilent wound named vampire! Soon, we will be judged for our sins!"

A man who was a deeply religious individual, Daniel Kuglitz had a very interesting story. He immigrated into Brazil at age 15 from the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1869 with his parents. He later became a Catholic priest and a highly influential figure in the Brazilian Church, even becoming a member in Emperor Pedro II's advisory council. After the fall of the empire in 1889, Kuglitz moved to Sao Paulo and there was sent to serve the eccentric Archbishop Pavel Costa, a man who was an important theologian but who suffered from a disease that caused his skin to swell in the sunlight. Or at least this is what he told humans. In truth, Pavel Costa was a Lasombra vampire and a high-ranking member of the Sabbat. Impressed by young Daniel's fanaticism and unshakeable faith and wanting to test it, Costa "spiritually awakened" him by embracing Kuglitz. Disgusted by his new nature and considering it to be against everything God loved, Daniel tried to kill himself by sunlight exposure, however he was saved by his sire who died immediately afterwards. Impressed by his maker's devotion, Daniel Kuglitz decided he would try to bring those creatures of Satan to God, while awaiting the final judgement of the Lord, with no success, of course.

"Leave it to the Lasombra to start with the religious shit. This power means only one thing: Antediluvians. The time for the final battle draws near, brothers. We need to prepare!"

The savage vampire Igmund was the youngest Cainite in the room, embraced in 1994 by a Gangrel named Dardan who, unlike the majority of Gangrel sires, he never abandoned his childe. Instead, he trained him for a couple of years and turned him into a warrior and a predator. After Dardan's death at the hands of the Nosferatu antitribu Preta, Igmund travelled to Brazil and executed his sire's murderer. The Sabbat, instead of killing him, gave him Preta's place in the ruling council of Sao Paulo and he became an agent of the Black Hand.

"We should try to analyze it in the first place. Imagine the confusion in the hearts of our enemies. We should try to capitalize on that, not march to war!"

Proenca had a point but Igmund wasn't impressed:

"And how would you capitalize on that, Vinicius? You are scared shitless of it, just like every other vampire in this world!"

"Let the Camarilla think that this power is under our control, capable of burning through their ranks from a huge distance. That will fuck up with their minds. Imagine their fear! One moment one Camarilla elder is there and the other, he is ashes."

"The Camarilla are not fools!"

"Of course not, Bishop, but the fear they will feel will disrupt their operations all around the world. They will be totally locked, being afraid even to leave their havens."

A voice was heard from the back of the basement.

"Good. While you work on your Camarilla manipulation plan, I plan to find out about what happened. And I suspect that everyone else will try too."

"My lord…"

A young vampire, appearing no more than thirty approached the other group of Cainites.

"It seems that you disagree with your fellow compatriots' plan, Igmund!"

"Of course! It's a waste of time! I say let's go and dust an Antediluvian or two and be done with it!"

"Good idea. Let's go to the Antediluvian shop and buy one or two to, you know, kill them. You are a fool and a brute, Igmund. Of course, being a Gangrel, what is to be expected? So, I'll give you a choice. You either play by the rules or you die!"

"My lord, I am loyal to the Sabbat and…"

"You are loyal but loyalty means that you must obey your elders and play your part in their plans! This… light could mean more than just Antediluvians. Maybe it will bring change… Now go, all of you. Trick the Camarilla into thinking that the light is our weapon."

"Yes, Lord Priscus!"

The man was none other than Charles Delmare, the South American Priscus of the Sabbat. A knight in his mortal years, Delmare became a powerful leader of the Sabbat and one of the greatest enemies of infernalists. He suspected that this phenomenon could be an application of such devilish Disciplines.

 **Outside of Vienna, Austria**

A small cabin in the woods. Its windows were painted pitch black. Pretty innocuous but it was more than it met the eye. Saulot approached it. The sun shone brightly on the sky and he enjoyed it more than anything. He would stay the entire day just looking at the blue sky above him but he had things to do, important things. Saulot entered the cabin to find several coffins lying on the floor, each containing a vampire. The Salubri saw a grimoire on the table:

 _I see… The sons of Mammon will rise and consume the world…_

"Well, I can't let that happen, can I?"

He opened each of the coffins revealing their contents. A Nosferatu vampire, a couple of Brujahs and a Malkavian. He approached the crazy vampire and touched his forehead. He immediately opened his eyes and started to tremble in fear:

"Who… who…?"

"Your forefather knows me!"

The Malkavian let out a shriek and started to shook inside the coffin. The other three vampires opened their eyes but they were killed immediately by Saulot. The Malkavian stopped his screams and a smile appeared on his face.

"Brother!"

"The time has come, my brother. Will your childer stand by my side?"

"They will!"

"I need to perform a ritual soon. It's of the outmost importance that I should not be disturbed. I need to gather allies."

"They saw the light… they will seek it!"

"Of course they will! And I need them to do so. Every son of Caine in this world will soon obtain the peace so much coveted by them. Seems I was lucky to find one of your lot here. They were a coven of sorts, infernalists most likely. They called themselves the Sons of Mammon."

"Not anymore…"

"I suppose so. Well, come with me! I shall leave Austria immediately. My childer will assemble elsewhere, awaiting me."

"The sun will kill the vessel."

Saulot opened his third eye and bathed the Malkavian in a bright white light.

"Now, you shall not fear the sun again. Come, brother.

After the two Kindred left, the cottage started to burn, with the flames consuming everything inside.


	4. The New World

The hospital room was very dark, yet that was no problem for the Kindred, who saw the sick boy perfectly. More importantly, he could see his illness and the fact that he didn't have much time left to live. Remembering Johann, Saulot approached the bed and opened his third eye. The light emanated from it bathed the child and suddenly, the color returned to his pale cheeks. However, the light woke up the child's father.

"Who... who are you?"

"Do not worry. I am a doctor here. I came in to check on your son."

"He... he is a fighter."

Saulot smiled:

"He is! And don't worry, he will win his fight."

After assuring the father that the boy will be alright, the Salubri left the room and entered another. Another ill child, another child who instead of playing, was suffering. Saulot opened his third eye again but before leaving the room, the Malkavian blocked his path:

"Do you know what you've done?"

"I brought healing to ailing children."

"The voices told me that one will become a thief in his life. His survival will inflict even more pain to the world."

"What he will become is none of my concern."

The Malkavian ran towards the bed trying to kill the boy but Saulot suddenly manifestated in front of him and grabbed him by the throat.

"Calm down, brother. Your madness overtook you. Let's leave this place so I can help you."

Outside of the hospital, the Malkavian protested:

"Typical you. Never thinking about the consequences! Just like you did in the past. Your childer are now scattered, hunted, killed on sight. And instead of uniting them, you waste your time in this city. What do you hope to accomplish here, Saulot?"

"You will see, brother."

Saulot touched his brother's forehead and the Malkavian said:

"Yes... Some clarity... How I craved to feel this again..."

"Even though it is temporary, it will help you, brother."

"Yes..."

"Nobody suffers like you do, Malkav."

"You suffered."

"My suffering was nothing."

Saulot then touched Malkav's cheek. His brother looked at him and smiled. Saulot, the brother he loved so much, the only one who could bring him succor. The founder of the Malkavians then remembered something from their time in the Land of Nod:

 _The moon was so white that it seemed like a pearl in the middle of the night sky. The city was bathed by it. Three men were sitting on the bank of a river, talking. One of them said:_

" _We are stronger than them. We are better than them. We should lead them as gods, for we are gods!"_

" _We are not gods, Set."_

" _Naive as always, Saulot. Sometimes, I think you are the madman, not him."_

 _Malkav said:_

" _Saulot is right. If you are a god, brother, go out into the sun. Feel its rays upon your skin. See if you survive it."_

 _Set was angry. Saulot then said:_

" _We should be protectors of the humans. Let's not forget we were humans once."_

" _I don't care about protecting them. I care only about our powers. Our Truth. We have so much potential, and our Embrace into darkness is just the beginning. I want to make us stronger. We are gods, brothers, and I will make sure I will be respected as such!"_

Malkav then returned in the present. In his eyes were bloody tears.

After walking for a bit, the two vampires were in a park. Nobody seemed to be around and Saulot was extremely curious about the place.

"Ah, I see..."

Three other vampires approached the two Antediluvians. Each of them had stakes in their hands and one of them said, clearly afraid:

"The most honorable Prince of the most exalted city of Vancouver, Siegfried, wants to see you. He heard you were in town."

"He did? Interesting."

"Your... display in Europe put the entire world on edge. And what our Prince wants is peace and stability for Vancouver. He doesn't want a conflict here, especially if one of the Elders is involved."

"Two actually."

Saulot pointed to the Malkavian whose mismatched eyes peered inside the Canadian vampire's undead heart.

"You... you are..."

"Yes, he is. Now, what is with the stake?"

All of them dropped the pieces of wood. The one who spoke earlier said:

"For defense."

The Malkavian laughed:

"Ha, ha, ha! So you thought you could stop us with wood?"

"Brother, don't laugh at them. Tell me, who are you, Cainite? I sense you have our sister Arikel's blood in your veins."

"Yes, I am a Toreador. I am Andrew Wolf, childe of Theodore of Berne."

"I'm afraid I don't know your sire."

Malkav spit:

"A downright bastard that one."

Saulot laughed:

"Well, you know better. My brother here has a special kind of insight. Please, I hope you don't feel insulted."

How could they feel insulted? They were scared out of their minds. For years and years, they were taught that Antediluvians are just myths, stories that the elder vampires tell their childer to scare them. Now, two such stories were there, in front of them, in that park, in their city. And what stories! Malkav the Moon and Saulot the Dragon themselves. In the history of the Cainites, Enoch, the child of Caine, was said to sire three childer: Arikel, the most beautiful woman in the world, Malkav the madman and probably the most controversial vampire who ever existed, Saulot. It was said that the madman and the Dragon were very close. Some called them brothers, others called them lovers. Whichever the truth was, it didn't matter. What mattered is that they were in Vancouver.

"Agh... Please, if you wish... Come to us to see the prince."

Saulot closed his eyes and after a few seconds, he opened them again and said:

"Of course."

A limousine brought the vampires to a large mansion. Inside, a tall and imposing vampire with medium length blond hair awaited them:

"I am Siegfried, childe of Regulus of Clan Ventrue and prince of the most exalted city of Vancouver."

Malkav frowned:

"You hate those of my blood."

"I have reasons for that. I will be direct."

He looked at Saulot:

"Ever since that strange light appeared in this world, every Kindred in the world went crazy. There is a lot of fear in the air, and I could only assume you are the source of it. What do you want?"

"I am afraid you won't understand."

"Try me."

"You are courageous, aren't you?"

"I am only wishing to protect this city."

"And I wish to protect everyone in this world. Human or Cainite."

"You? You who caused so much misery in the world? The Baali were..."

"Not of my blood. I didn't create them."

"Of course you would say that. And now, you talk about protecting the entire world."

"Don't believe me, then. The time will come when the entire truth will be revealed, and all the pain that was inflicted upon the childer of Caine's blood will be undone."

"How would you do that?"

"My plan will be revealed at the right time. There are others who are sympathetic to my cause. I wish just safe haven for them."

"Why Vancouver?"

"Where else to go? In Europe, only the Tzimisce would take us, and to throw our lots with them would be madness. Here in the New World, the society seem to be more... relaxed. Safer. Besides, your city is protected by the Garou, isn't it? It's safe here, like I said."

"And I wish for it to remain like this. You and your... brother will bring war to my doorstep. The Sabbat are driven insane just by the idea of Antediluvian, but to know the location of _two_ of them? And for that location to be Vancouver? The city won't survive their onslaught."

"Who said anything about the Sabbat being your enemy, or mine for that matter?"

"Are you mad?"

Saulot pointed to his silent brother:

"No, he is the one who is mad. I'm simply telling you that the Sabbat are not your enemy, nor mine. Tell me, Ventrue, what kind of blood are you craving?"

"I don't see why is that important."

Malkav then said to his brother:

"Twenty-three years old virgins."

Siegfried was speechless but what can you expect? Malkav was the _founder_ of the Malkavians, of course he knew this.

"Well, good luck finding those in the modern society. What if I told you there is within my power to release you from this pain? Not just you, but every Cainite in the world."

"What?"

Saulot nodded:

"Yes. No more fiending for weird blood again for Ventrue, no more frenzies for Brujah... The Malkavians' minds will be clearer than rain."

Siegfried trembled. His one weakness and Saulot have a solution for it? Could an Antediluvian be believed?

"What do you need to do this?"

"A place where I can gather my allies, first and foremost."

"Granted. What else?"

"Mmm, so quick to accept my offer. I thank you for your trust."

"I don't trust you, Dragon. But I am willing to see what do you want to do."

"I see. I want only one more thing."

"Tell me."

"Help me and my allies destroy the cursed Tremere and I will release you all from your suffering."

Siegfried remembered that once, he travelled with a Tremere. He would not wish harm upon her, but the Tremere were a menace to the entire world, their Thaumaturgy a great weapon against which few could stand. The Ventrue said:

"By my power and grace as Siegfried, Childe of Regulus and Prince of Vancouver, I grant you safe haven within my demesne."

Saulot smiled and said:

"And I, Saulot, Childe of Enoch, I accept."

Malkav nodded too.

After making a phone call, Siegfried said:

"The top floor of the Sutton is for you and your allies, Elder One. I hope you will deliver on your promise."

"I will."

The two ancients left the mansion. Saulot then said to his brother, Malkav:

"It has begun."


	5. The Order of Cascadia

**Cologne, Germany**

"I can't believe it. Are you sure?"

"Yes, my lady. The Malkavian is not there anymore."

"Where the hell would Carsten be… Leave us. Continue to search for him. Also, have your ghouls search for him during the day!"

"Yes, madam. "

Lydia Schmidt went straight for her blood doll, a young prostitute, and tore at her neck. After drinking for a while, the Princess of Cologne approached Petras and said:

"I was a fool, Petras. You were right. Something is amiss."

The Toreador nodded and said, with an accusatory tone:

"Like I said, your inactivity puts us into a bad position. The Sabbat is starting to move. They are on the prowl."

"Of course they are. Everybody is going completely batshit right now! What the fuck is wrong with this world, Petras?"

"The world isn't wrong, Lydia. It is us. Something is out there, something that is targeting Kindred. The Camarilla can withstand anything, as it did for centuries, but these… phenomenon… Do you know what I've heard from one of my contacts in the US?"

"What? Don't tell me this light…"

"No, no. Though I think it's even worse. The young son of a farmer from Texas died a few days ago. He fell from a horse and completely broke his neck. He died instantaneously. Within the hour, someone came to the house and, be ready, resurrected the dead child!"

"Bullshit."

"No, it's all over the news and my Kindred source confirmed it. Of course, the peasant fuck believes that man was an angel of God or something. This is vampire work. A vampire did that."

"We can't resurrect the dead, Petras."

"The Toreador can't. Neither you, the Ventrue. But there is a clan that can bring back life to a lifeless corpse…"

"Don't say their names! The soul drinkers can't be involved in any of this!"

"Why not?"

"They are in hiding. Whenever we catch one of them, we kill it on sight. They wouldn't risk their filthy existences to revive a peasant child."

"Unless they aren't afraid anymore. Unless they provoke us, blatantly making use of their powers so that they can instill fear in us."

Lydia laughed:

"How can we fear them?"

"We should fear them, Lydia. We should. And, we should do something about this situation."

"Yes… But what?"

 **Vladivostok, Russia**

The man walked with small steps, as he couldn't be faster due to the heavy snow. It was weird snowing this much this time of the year, but the man was determined to reach the church. The road was very dark, as the sun hasn't risen already, but the man was not afraid. How could he be? He will enter a house of God. After a few minutes, he entered the church, which was empty and, after seeing the old priest sitting on a chair near the altar, he went straight to him and said:

"Father Dmitri, good evening!"

"Ah, Grigori. Welcome!"

"Thank you for receiving me, Father. I know you are very busy and you do not see just anyone. I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

"Please, child, do not thank me. Thank God. When Father Boris told me about you, I knew I have to help you. Tell me, what ails your heart?"

"I… it's difficult for me to talk about it. I am ashamed."

"Please, child, do not be. Here you are in a house of God and God forgives those who come before Him."

"Thank you, father… I… I had lustful thoughts."

"Did you? Towards who?"

"A woman, my neighbor. Whenever I see her, my heart just…"

"Love is not a sin, child. But lust… lust can change the pure feelings of the heart and pervert them."

"I know."

"Just like you perverted yourself when you took that vampire's blood into you."

Grigori's heart almost stopped. How did the priest know?

"Father, what…"

Suddenly, Grigori was frozen. He couldn't move a muscle, nor speak. From the altar came a second man, a savage with long black hair and a black beard who said:

"Good job, priest. Now I take over."

"I shall assist you. It's the Archbishop's desire."

"As you wish. I hope you are not squeamish."

"After nine hundred years… no, I'm not."

What? Nine hundred years? Then this priest is a… No, it can't be. Though he never saw Father Dmitri in the daylight before, he knew Dmitri was a pillar of the community in their city.

"Good. Now, ghoul, tell me, where is the Antediluvian?"

Grigori now was able to speak and started to scream:

"Help! HELP!"

"Scream all you want, no one can hear you. Now talk. Where is the Antediluvian?"

"I have no idea what are you talking about. What Antediluvian?"

"Don't lie to me, whelp! Your domitor is Nicolai and that one sent you to America to find the Antediluvian who created that fucking light!"

"Nicolai gives me his blood but he…"

"Stop fucking lying!"

"Fine! Fine! Nicolai heard that an elder may be loose in the New World. He sent me to Los Angeles, then to Houston but I had no success!"

"You lie, I can sense it. So, let's start pulling your innards out from you… through your ass!"

"Please, no! Father! Father, don't let him!"

The priest said:

"If you tell us the truth, I swear I won't let him torture you."

"Alright, alright! The vampire I spoke to in Texas? His childe in Whistler, Canada claims that two immensely powerful vampires were sighted in Vancouver. But Vancouver is a closed city for those that are not tolerated by its Prince."

"Two? There are two of them?"

"I don't know, please…"

The bearded vampire turned his eyes towards the priest:

"So, Canada it is."

"Not surprising. The werewolves protect the city of Vancouver. The Antediluvian, or Antediluvians, hides or hide there."

"PLEASE! I told you everything. You promised me!"

"Yes, I did promise you he wouldn't torture you."

Saying this, the priest approached Grigori and drove a dagger through his heart, killing him instantaneously."

"Send word to the Archbishop. We fly to Canada."

 **Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada**

A young vampire entered the large conference room of the hotel, clearly shaken. He bowed to Prince Siegfried and then he approached Saulot, saying to the Antediluvian:

"My lord… Your guests have arrived."

"Good. Send them in."

The neonate bowed before the infinitely more powerful vampire in front of him and left, telling the guests to enter, with Saulot, Malkav and Prince Siegfried awaiting them. They were three in number, two men and a woman. Saulot invited them to sit and said:

"Welcome. Welcome."

One of the guests, a short man who looked like he was in his early 20s said:

"So Siegfried wasn't kidding at all. Fuck."

"No, Gabriel, I wasn't kidding."

Saulot smiled towards Gabriel and said:

"And you might be?"

"Gabriel Glover."

Malkav, who was barely conscious before the meeting, now was awake and said:

"YOU! You are that Brujah fellow who is hunted by the Followers of our dear brother Set."

"That's me."

Gabriel Glover was an interesting individual, a leader and a rebel, an explorer and, most importantly, a powerful sixth generation Cainite. He was born in 1094 in Mainz as the fourth son of a powerful merchant and his noble wife. The merchant wanted to give young Gabriel to the church but after being taken by the priest, the boy killed him, disemboweling him with a dagger. This deed wasn't seen by anyone, as it happened in a forest. Well… someone did see what happened. A Brujah elder named Basil was impressed with the young man's savagery and discontent and revealed himself to Gabriel, proposing to Embrace him. Gabriel accepted immediately. This was in 1117. Since then, for almost 800 years, Gabriel Glover would be seen as a symbol of rebellion in the Brujah clan, a man whose only desire was change. Stagnation was disgusting to him, no matter if it was positive or not. He helped kings usurp other kings only to then help other kings usurp them in return. His star however would fade in 1916 when, while posing as a soldier in World War I, he discovered a secret haven of Nefertiti, a Setite Methuselah of immense power whose blood was so potent that it could be used to Embrace animals. Having an enmity towards her, Gabriel decided to ruin her plans to Embrace a young man who was groomed even since birth to become a Cainite. Thus, Gabriel infiltrated the haven where the young man lived an almost paradisiac existence and gave him his blood, making him a Brujah, not a Setite as Nefertiti intended. Furious, she killed the neonate vampire and declared war to Gabriel Glover who was then forced to leave Europe for North America. Arriving in Canada, the Brujah lived for a while in Edmonton until he was discovered by the Followers of Set. Killing two of them and staking another, Gabriel decided to go to the only place in the New World where he could be safe from the Setites: Vancouver. Thus, in 1923, Gabriel Glover would enter in the service of Prince Siegfried, being the first member and the leader of the Knights of the Order of Cascadia, a secret group of Kindred who acted as spies and enforcers of the prince's will. Saulot then said to the Brujah:

"Fear not, Gabriel of Mainz, as you are with friends here. Your Prince told me that you are his most elite of warriors, who swore to protect this city. Also, he told me that you do not fear anything and you are willing to do anything to accomplish your goals."

A tall and beautiful woman arose from the chair and said:

"It's true, Ancient One."

"And you are?"

"I am Elsa Thurmond, childe of Septimus the Elder of clan Ventrue."

Elsa was another interesting vampire that joined Siegfried's order. Born in 1882 in New York, she was a bright student, earning her place at Yale. While at the university, Elsa discovered that many of the students attended a night course of mythology taught by an extremely old and strange Italian man but during the day, not one of them seemed to remember it. Being curious and inquisitive by nature, she began to investigate and eventually, she discovered that the _professor_ was a vampire. Instead of panicking, Elsa approached the vampire, the sixth generation Siegfried the Elder and, after talking for hours about philosophy and history, he eventually Embraced her. Septimus then sent his childe to Vancouver to serve his closest friend, clanmate and confidant Siegfried. The Salubri nodded and asked the third vampire:

"And you are?"

"I am Maurizio, childe of Aemilio of Capua."

"I remember your sire from long ago. Is he still with us?"

"Unfortunately no, he was destroyed by the Tremere."

Gabriel Glover said:

"This is the fate of those who speak against the Usurpers. I met Aemilio the Toreador years ago. He was a good man and true, but he stood no chance against the fucking Tremere."

Saulot then said:

"And this is why I am offering you a chance to defeat them. I know their abilities for I fought their founder for almost a thousand years. I know when they are at their strongest and when they are at their weakest. We can't fail, unless we abate from the plan."

Maurizio said:

"And what that plan might be, Ancient One? With all due respect but the Kindred in this room are not enough to defeat the Usurpers."

Gabriel laughed:

"We have two Antediluvians on our side. Antediluvians! I never though anyone ever met one and now, we meet two."

Malkav said:

"Actually, this is not my true face. This is a body my consciousness possesses at least until I find a better alternative."

"Fuck that, it's still you underneath."

Malkav nodded. Elsa then said:

"Going against the Tremere would be suicide because it is not only them we will be facing. The entire Camarilla is at their disposal. Besides, if the Sabbat finds out that we are harboring **two** Antediluvians, they will descend upon the city and ruin it. I'm sorry, my Prince, but I can't take part in the destruction of Vancouver."

Saulot spoke:

"Be not afraid, child. The Sabbat will never fight against us."

"How would you know that?"

"I simply know. And you shall know too. You see, no vampire, not even the Sabbat would scorn the gift I bring to this suffering world."

"What gift?"

"Freedom from need, child. Freedom from want, from pain, from sorrow, from hunger…"

Hearing those words, Malkav started to weep tears of blood. Maurizio was visibly uncomfortable but he decided to ask the question he wanted for so long to ask an ancient vampire:

"Can you… make us walk in the sun?"

Saulot said:

"And so, we come to the core of the problem. Yes, child. Yes."

Hearing this, Maurizio said:

"Then I am yours to command, Ancient One."

Gabriel Glover then smiled and said:

"Having such an advantage over the Setites would help me destroy them without problems. I am yours too. Elsa?"

Elsa thought for a moment at the opportunity in front of her. Since she became a Cainite, she started to miss the sun so much, the happiness it provided to humans and the life it generates. She then said:

"Likewise. I am yours to command."

"Good. This meeting proved to be very fruitful."

"It was. But we shall leave. The sun will rise soon."

"Ah…"

Saulot then opened his third eye, basking the three members of the Order of Cascadia and the Prince in a white light. They felt energized and Gabriel Glover asked:

"What did you do to us?"

"How the modern businessmen say it… Ah! I just gave you a signing bonus."

Saulot proceeded to rip the curtains from the window. The first rays of sun illuminated the skies above Vancouver. Siegfried and the three started to scream but to their immense surprise, the sun did nothing to them. Elsa started to shake while Gabriel was almost Frenzying. Saulot's hand immediately touched his forehead and calmed him. Maurizio slowly approached the window and opened it, looking to the yellow orb that was slowly rising. He then asked Saulot:

"Where to, now?"

The Salubri Antediluvial smiled and said:

"We shall depart for Turkey. Prince Siegfried, please give shelter to any Salubri that comes to this city."

"Of course."

Now seeing the Antediluvian's power with his own eyes, Siegfried became totally devoted to Saulot's cause, whatever that may be. Malkav said:

"Turkey… What are we going to do there, brother?"

"We need an army, aren't we?"


	6. The Warlord's Army

**Central Anatolia, Turkey**

The small village could be seen from the cliff the two Antediluvians sat on, pondering at what would they do next:

"The three went ahead to scout the area. What is the matter, brother? Do you feel unwell?"

Malkav said:

"Have I ever felt well?"

"You did. Once, but you did."

"True. Yet, now… I feel so desperate yet no amount of happiness can erase my desperation, so thirsty yet no amount of blood can quench my thirst."

"Do not worry, brother, everything will end soon and you shall be free of your pain once and for all."

"This is a fool's errand, brother. You are obsessed with solving the world's problems just as Set is obsessed with his self-proclaimed divinity, just like Arikel was obsessed with her need for beauty. You are a madman, brother, more so than me."

Saulot smiled and said:

"Takes one to know one, Malkav."

"Indeed."

Malkav then looked at the sun shining brightly above them, visibly uncomfortable, fearing its rays and its beauty.

"This is not normal, Saulot… We vampires should not bask in the sunlight."

"Why is that?"

"Because we don't deserve it."

"Who says that? Who decides what a vampire deserves or not? If we have the power to change our plight for the better, why not act on it? Is it wrong for one to try to change his lot in life?"

"No, but we don't have lives…"

"True, we don't, yet."

"What are you truly planning, brother? I don't think you will go to _this_ length just to destroy the Tremere."

He pointed towards the village in the valley. Saulot then said:

"The destruction of the Tremere is just the beginning. These are the Final Nights, brother. The true enemy will soon show his monstrous face and every being on this planet will die. Unless we can change that."

"How?"

"Well, today's efforts, for example. If we manage this, we will have a powerful force at our disposal, a force entirely under our control. A force strong enough to fight against the Tremere."

Malkav then started to shake, crying tears of blood. Saulot then approached his ailing brother and started to caress his forehead. The Malkavian said:

"Please, tell me about Golconda."

"Why?"

"It calms me… It makes my imagination run wild."

"Your imagination always runs wild, brother. Yet, Golconda was not what **I** was imagining when I left home. Do you remember when I left? Set gave me my staff and you gave me your eye. I swore to you I would return with an answer to our questions yet I found only more questions. When the Angel of God asked me what my reward would be, I chose the worst one. Then, I didn't realize it. Now, I do."

"You never told me about this."

"I couldn't. Brother, the road to Golconda is not easy for us. Yet, at the end three choices await, different for each and every one of the damned who are willing to walk the path."

"What were yours, Saulot?"

Saulot closed his eyes and opened his third eye. Malkav then noticed he wasn't in the Anatolian desert anymore, but in a dark, damp cave.

"Saulot?"

His brother was not with him. He sat on his knees at the center of the cave, dust darkening his skin and only a rag rotted by time to cover him. A voice then spoke to him in a language Malkav never heard before yet he could understand it with perfect clarity.

 _"_ _What would it be, Saulot, childe of Enoch, childe of Caine, child of Adam, child of God? Will you renounce this miserable life as a bloodsucker? Will you return to the humanity from which you were stolen by your sire, never to be damned again?"_

 _"_ _No."_

 _"_ _What would it be, Saulot, childe of Enoch, childe of Caine, child of Adam, child of God? Will you renounce your existence on this world? Will you join your Father and Creator in Heaven as His most beloved son? Will you taste the sweetness of Paradise? Will you partake in the Joy of seeing God's face?"_

 _"_ _No."_

 _"_ _What would it be, Saulot, childe of Enoch, childe of Caine, child of Adam, child of God? Will you remain in your body, trapped for eternity in your bloodsucker form, never to die again? No sun will burn you to ashes, no stake will impale your dark heart and hurt you, no Beast will rage inside you for blood and murder. But know this, vampire, if you choose this, you will never see the wondrous face of our Lord and you will never walk amongst the humans again as a human. Heaven and eternal peace will be forbidden to you. So, what says you?"_

 _"_ _Yes."_

Malkav was speechless, his brain almost burning. The entire Weavery he devised was overloading with so much sensorial input, so much pain and sorrow. Saulot then opened a third eye on his forehead and started to walk towards the exit of the cave. Near the exit that was blocked by a huge rock, a small, Asian-looking man, said to him:

 _"_ _What have you done, Zao-Lat?"_

 _"_ _What I had to."_

 _"_ _I thought you were seeking peace, a release from your cursed nature. I was a fool…"_

 _"_ _I'm sorry but I don't seek peace for me, but for all the others who share my curse. This is the only way I can help them."_

 _"_ _You betrayed me, Zao-Lat. You swore to me an oath. You swore that you will never use what I'm teaching you for other than enlightenment. Yet, you used these sacred secrets to gain power! This is not a power for you or anyone else to possess."_

 _"_ _Yet it was given to me. I won the right to possess it."_

 _"_ _True that may be, but that doesn't change the fact that you betrayed the trust me and my kind gave you. Begone, Zao-Lat! From this day until the end of the days, you shall be known as Zao-Lat the Traitor!"_

 _"_ _I accept this."_

Saying this, Saulot jumped on the Asian man and proceeded to drain him of his blood. The man's face was livid and before he could say anything, he fell down, dead. Saulot then approached the large rock that was blocking the exit from the cave and, with just his finger, smashed it to pieces. The Salubri looked at the sun above him and smiled.

Malkav reawakened. Saulot was sitting next to him, all three eyes opened.

"Did you…"

"I told you it is not an easy choice to make. I'm sorry, brother, instead of calming you, I roused you even more."

"I do not want to talk about this ever again, brother."

"As you wish."

 **Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada**

The moon shone brightly above the city of Vancouver and the air was cool but not too cold. A perfect night for a stroll! This is what a young couple thought when decided to spend a romantic evening in the quiet Stanley Park, until they were found by the vampires who drained them and ditched them in the waters near the seawall. One of them, the Brazilian Cainite Vinicius Proenca said:

"Now, let's burn this place so that the prince and his cronies will give us the Antediluvian!"

Igmund, the violent Gangrel _antitribu_ said:

"I thought you would never ask!"

The group of vampires approached a large tree and set it on fire, hoping to draw the Antediluvian out from the city. What they drew was much worse. Their howl usually can be heard from miles away but this time, they could only hear it when the Garou were close to them. Vinicius Proenca looked at the beast in front of him and shouted:

"Lupines! Fuck!"

The other members of the Sabbat started to run but for each Cainite that ran, another Garou was after them. Only Proenca and Igmund tried to fight them but the Lupine proved to be too powerful. Igmund assumed his Protean form of the Shape of the Beast, turning himself into a large wolf but, after a short struggle with the Garou, the brutal Gangrel was torn apart by the larger and more powerful beast. Proenca started to run too but the agility of the werewolf was too great. It caught the Brazilian but before the Garou could finish him, it suddenly became enveloped into a large cage of shadows that seemed like it boiled him. After a while, the cage disappeared and the werewolf retreated. Vinicius was shocked, looking behind him as a man with black hair and a black beard wearing a nice suit approached him.

"Unfortunately, I couldn't save the others."

"Lord Gratiano."

Vinicius bowed before the Archbishop of Rio de Janeiro, Gratiano de Veronese, an immensely powerful Lasombra Methuselah and a leading Anarch during the Revolt that created the Sabbat. Gratiano said:

"Kuglitz said that he sent your team here to hunt an Antediluvian."

"There are actually two, Lord Gratiano."

"Two of them? Hmm… It seems to me that this is way above your pay grade, Vinicius. You should return to Brazil. I will fight the Antediluvians."

"Thank you, my lord, but I want to assist you."

"There is no need, truly. Leave this city."

"As you wish, Lord Gratiano. Thank you for saving me."

"I came here with a boat. Take it and go to Nanaimo. There, take the plane I came here with and go home."

"Yes!"

After Vinicius Proenca left, Gratiano approached the burning tree and after extending his right arm, a jet of water sent from his palm extinguished it. A voice then said to him:

"Well, well. Thaumaturgy?"

Gratiano said:

"Well, in this time and age, one must be ready for anything."

"True that."

The man talking with the Sabbat leader was none other than Prince Siegfried.

"Why did you spare that lackey?"

"I didn't. Right now, my plane in Nanaimo is fitted with a bomb. I never let loose ends."

"Ruthless."

"I am a Sabbat, aren't I?"

"So, have you decided?"

"To be honest, I thought that picture of yours in the fucking sun was doctored. You can't believe what kids these days can do to pictures on these… computers. But I had a Nosferatu verify it and it's legit. So, you can truly walk into the daylight?"

"Yes, but not through my own ability."

"I thought not. Who are the Antediluvians who granted you this ability?"

"The Salubri known as Saulot. His brother the Malkavian was there too, but this power came through Saulot."

"Saulot? Impossible. The Usurper Tremere diablerized him."

"Apparently, he returned."

Gratiano was shocked hearing this. Was it truly possible for a diablerized Cainite to return in the world of the living? Such a power is beyond anything the Lasombra could ever imagine. He then said to the Prince:

"I accept your offer, Ventrue. And, to prove my sincerity, I will ensure the Sabbat will not interfere in your new master's plans, for as long as he doesn't do anything against our clans, of course."

The Ventrue nodded and said:

"It's pretty strange to hear this coming from one such as you, Gratiano. Your lot hunts the Antediluvians just as you murdered and then drained your own sire, Lasombra himself. You will be seen as a betrayer in the Sabbat."

"It's time for a new mentality in my organization. Our greatest weakness is that we can't live in the daylight and, even more so for us the Lasombra, we can't even blend naturally into the human society. To escape this curse, we shall do anything, even work for the Antediluvians."

"What of the Camarilla? The Sabbat's attack on Vancouver failed because you sabotaged it but them? I can't see a Camarilla vampire to team up with Garou to make sure their efforts in taking my city fail."

"The Camarilla has its own problems, Prince. The Malkavians deserted them."

"What? Are you sure?"

"Apparently, something happened today. Something that made the Lunatics even crazier and they said out of the blue: Fuck the Capes, we're out of here."

"Also, our own Malkavians started to speak in riddles, saying that _we live during the Coming of Light_."

"Something is happening, Gratiano."

"Well, I can't wait to see it unfold."

 **Central Anatolia, Turkey**

The two Antediluvians and the three members of the Order of Cascadia entered the village. Gabriel Glover said:

"This place is completely deserted. The only inhabited place in this area is thirty miles east from here, a village named… Kaz… Kazir? Kaz…"

Elsa then said:

"Kazzhar. I went there during the day and asked about this place. The kine told me that this place is cursed and nobody, not even authorities wonder around here."

Saulot said:

"Then, this is the place."

Maurizio said while looking at the collapsed buildings and columns:

"This place is ancient. It feels so strange. Guys, do you feel what I feel?"

"What?"

"It's like a… hum. From underground."

Malkav said:

"The dead are calling…"

Elsa then replied:

"What dead?"

Saulot said:

"Those we will awaken."

The vampires stopped in front of a destroyed building. Inside, a secret passage led them to an underground cavern and at the end of it, a large door, sealed with various arcane formulas and a large skull symbol. Saulot said:

"Well, this is it. It will be better if you step back for a moment."

His companions listened. After this, the Salubri opened his third eye, basking the door in such a bright light that made the long dead eyes of the other Cainites sting. After a while, the formulas started to vanish and the door slowly opened. Saulot said:

"I'm going inside. Stay here."

They obeyed again. The third generation vampire entered the inner sanctum of that dreadful place and the only thing his companions heard for almost half an hour was a series of screams. Then, Saulot returned to the surface, but he wasn't alone. Malkav couldn't believe his eyes, neither the other three. Saulot was followed by countless vampires who looked so emaciated that it seemed to the others that they haven't fed in millennia. They looked like corpses, with tattered clothes and emitting droning sounds. Saulot's voice broke the monotonous hum produced by the vampires:

"Rejoice, my friends, for we have recovered a clan of our fellow Cainites that was lost to the ages long ago. Once, they craved vengeance against the Sire who sealed them away, condemning them to diablerie and torpor but now, their only desire is to serve us and the world we shall create together."

Elsa was horrified but at the same time, astonished. Those vampires were the last remnants of the long lost clan, the Cappadocians, the original clan of death. She then said to Saulot:

"Where to now, Great Antediluvian?"

"To victory, child!"


	7. That Night

**London, England**

The girl laid in front of her, drained of her blood, her life slowly leaving her body. The vampire smiled, licking a trickle of blood from her lips, riding the wave as her victim's blood lifted her up high. It was her only moment of pleasure, her only moment of respite. But it wouldn't continue for long. Another entered the room, a dark skin man with even darker eyes, approaching the woman and saying:

"She was of noble blood, you know? Her father is an earl."

"I know. I tasted her noble blood. It was delicious."

"You are too careless."

"Careless? Which one are you now?"

The man scoffed:

"How rich… _You_ asking me who am I, you who has as many identities as stars are on the night sky. But, to answer your question, it's me, the one I've always been."

"It is _you_! The other one wouldn't be so poetic."

The woman kissed the man on the lips, the noblewoman's blood touching his lips, entering his body and leaving him wanting more. He then said:

"It's me. Not the one you are looking for."

The woman smiled and approached the window. She could clearly see the moon's reflection in the Thames. She wanted to say something to the man but suddenly, she was interrupted by another who knocked at the door. The man said:

"We're busy."

" _It's important, my lord._ "

"Come in."

A young vampire entered the room with a laptop. After plugging it in, he then said:

"What you're about to see is footage taken from a local TV station of Vancouver, Canada. Apparently, two bodies were discovered in the waters near a park, drained of blood."

"And how it's that important? A vampire failed to dispose of the rests of his meal, what of it?"

"It's more than this, Lord Montgomery. Here…"

 _"Vancouver is in shock today as two bodies were discovered in Stanley Park. They were identified as Brian and Danielle Larson, newlyweds from Toronto spending their honeymoon in our city. The officers who arrived earlier at the scene claim that the bodies are, and I quote, without a drop of blood left in them. Could this be a serial killer prowling Vancouver? I am here with Mr. Oliver Thorne, head of a special forensic team assigned to this case. Mr. Thorne?"_

 _"Thank you. I can't really say for sure what the cause of death was, that would be clarified after the autopsy but from what we've managed to deduct, it seems it was suicide."_

 _"Suicide? The officer said that the bodies seemed to be drained of blood."_

 _"Yes, it's true. Both of them have neck wounds which seem to have been inflicted with a sharp object. There seem to be no signs of struggle so we believe that it was suicide."_

 _"The couple was newlywed, what could have possibly caused their suicide?"_

 _"We don't know. We will inform you more after the autopsy and after the investigation ends."_

 _"Thank you, Mr. Thorne. Back to you, Ann._ "

Montgomery looked at the footage and something inside him stirred. His lady partner was also dumbfounded. She asked the vampire who brought the laptop:

"When was this taken?"

"9:30 AM, Pacific."

"Roll back a bit and pause. This man…"

"That… that was no fucking forensic detective."

 **Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada**

A few hours later, Gratiano de Veronese stood in front of a mirror. As usual, he didn't see anything in it except furniture and walls. The Lasombra sighed and approached the window, slowly putting his left hand out in the sun. It didn't burn. Gratiano closed his eyes and for the first time in hundreds of years, he felt pain. Not physical pain, for his dead body was incapable to feel pain, but a pain of the soul. The Methuselah then said, while smiling:

"An intruder in my room. Should I call the guards?"

Saulot approached the Sabbat member and said:

"You are an awfully cheerful man for someone who is supposed to be dead afraid of Antediluvians. Tell me, Gratiano, what did you do with the gift I gave you?"

"I explored the city. It was the first time in…mmm… eight hundred years since I saw the sun? TV and computer don't count."

"You did more than explore. You appeared on television. I suppose there is a reason behind that?"

"Of course it is. It will attract more of our kind to our cause. They saw me in broad daylight and not bursting into flames. That could be an incentive for many of them to join."

" _Our_ cause, Gratiano? Do you even understand what _our_ cause is?"

"You want to destroy the Tremere. "

"True."

"Well, I'm all for destroying the Tremere. It will cripple the Camarilla."

Saulot scoffed:

"Please, I can't believe that your petty Jyhad is your reason for coming here. You will be seen as a traitor by your fellow Sabbat. They will know that it was an Antediluvian who gave you the gift of light. They will hunt you down, Gratiano."

The Lasombra closed his eyes. After a while, he opened them and said:

"You don't believe me?"

"No, I believe you, but I don't believe your _reason_. You don't want just the destruction of the Tremere, but also you want protection."

Gratiano laughed:

"From what?"

"Your sire."

The Lasombra froze, his smile disappearing in an instant. Saulot continued:

"Either you drank him dry and you took his blood and his soul or he duped you and he's still alive. Either way, you need protection. I fought my diablerist for centuries and eventually, I won. Isn't that your worst fear, Gratiano? Lasombra to take control over you? If you diablerized him, of course. You see, I always wanted to know what happened that night. Care to tell?"

The Italian vampire said:

"What's to tell? I drank, I lived. Well… I continued to exist."

"And you did a wonderful job at that. But please, indulge me. Tell me."

A man of many secrets, Gratiano de Veronese would rather expose them all rather than betray his one secret that he protected all these years: what happened that night. Which night? Why, the night when he diablerized his sire and clan founder, Lasombra. The night which forever changed the world of darkness. The Sabbat vampire hated to admit but Saulot was right. What happened that night must have had repercussions. He then said:

"Well, sit down."

Saulot sat on a couch with Gratiano sitting on an armchair in front of him. The Italian said:

"My mortal family was very rich and powerful. We controlled half of the Italian states. The pope himself was our man. Yet I never knew true power until my sire gave me his Embrace. He took my blood and gave me fire in return. My mother wanted to give me to the church. Maybe I had a chance to become pope. Well, now I am not a pope, but an Archbishop."

Gratiano laughed. Saulot then said:

"To control mortals through religion or Cainites through fear. Is there any difference between the two?"

"Well, we can answer our flock's prayers. God doesn't do that."

"Maybe He does."

"He doesn't. Men fight all their lives to be worthy to join God in His eternal Kingdom and in the end, they turn to dust, their flesh feeding the worms of the earth. At least we give people what they want here, on this earth."

"Yes, we give damnation."

"We give power. The first thing I understood about my new condition was that before I was turned, I was nothing. After my Embrace, I was akin to a god. I suppose every whelp thinks the same when she feels that liquid fire coursing through her. Just as I felt. But… I also understood that no matter how powerful I was, there was someone more powerful above me, someone who had the right to end my existence on a whim. That… I couldn't bear. I couldn't bear my life, even one as accursed as mine, to be in someone else's hands. The Blood Bond drew me insane. When I heard about those… Anarchs, I believed they were nothing more than Brujah rabble rousers or Gangrel moon howlers doing what they do best, and that's making a mess of everything. How wrong I was… When they told me they could remove my bond to my sire, I joined. Of course I joined. They gave me freedom."

"Yet it was power you sought."

"Freedom is power. Freedom from the Antediluvians' yolk… Even more so."

"Oh, the irony. Now you seek to serve an Antediluvian."

"I don't serve you, Saulot. But if you give your gifts so liberally to everyone who asks for them, why shouldn't I partake?"

"True, true. Continue, please."

"Ah, yes. That night. Well, in my clan, at that time was divided in factions. Informally of course, for all Lasombra should be united but you know how it gets when you put men and women with different ideas together. Anyway, my brother Montano led one such faction, the traditionalistic faction that opposed the Anarchs and sought to keep the old order intact. Me, on the other hand, I couldn't bear to bow before my sire any longer so I sought to attract young but powerful Lasombra to my side. One night, I met with them in secret and told them what they wanted to hear from a Methuselah: _all that power to be yours to do with it as you wish, freely and unencumbered by anyone, especially not your elders_."

"Lies."

"Well, in each lie there is a grain of truth. I never wanted to lead. Leading is not for me."

"Why?"

"Because one should not fear the man on the throne but the man behind the throne. Do you know why those inquisitors from the old days were so successful? They didn't serve the king, their God. They served those behind the king, behind God. A king is useful as a symbol not as a leader."

"That's what you've thought when you drained Lasombra?"

"And it was useful. His destruction ignited all of this. I changed everything that night! I turned the king into a symbol. A symbol of freedom."

"Shame it didn't work as you intended."

"Not all of us are visionaries. Especially not Montano. He was a warrior and every other lick bowed before him like he was some kind of a god. Montano the Wise, the one who told us there was no destiny for us to choose but what our sires choose for us. Fuck that. I proved otherwise."

"You hated him."

"I did."

"But you envied him, as well."

"Not really him, but his power. I always admitted when someone was stronger than me, for a man who doesn't know his limits is a man lost. This is why I had to find allies and not just allies from my clan."

"Assamites."

Gratiano nodded:

"The assassins were more than happy to help me, provided I pay, of course."

"What did they want?"

"What do Assamites always want? Blood."

"And did you pay them?"

"Oh, yes. And the time came to reap the benefits of our alliance. All the elders of the clan were invited to Sicily by Montano. He wanted to ensure that the clan stays united and that it rejected the _Anarch heresy_ , as he called it. When I received my invitation, I gladly accepted it. There, Montano looked into my eyes and said: _Brother, I heard disturbing rumors that you might be allied with those heretics. Lies, of course. But… are you unhappy with your lot in unlife, Gratiano?_ I said _yes_. Then, the Assamites attacked. Some of the elders perished, like my sister Khanom Mehr. After I gave her the Final Death, Montano cried: _Gratiano, are you mad? You would spill the blood of your brothers and sisters in our father's home? Where our father's body sits in endless dream?_ In the end, I descended that crypt, alongside the remaining Assamites. I chained my brother and dragged him with me, to witness the reaping of the fruits of our labors. There he was… pale, hungry… sleeping. I swore I could smell his blood, the utmost expression of power, of forbidden knowledge. But… I knew that the moment my lips touched that blood, everything would change, and not necessarily for the better. Besides, Lasombra's soul would have overwhelmed me, just as you overwhelmed that awful mage. I would not risk it. Yet I wanted power. And like I said, Lasombra's destruction would have become a symbol. Ah… Me and the Assamites… we did the Ritual of the Bitter Rose."

The Ritual of the Bitter Rose is known only to blood mages and the most degenerated diablerists. Usually, only one Cainite enjoys the power and the pleasure that came with Amaranth. But this ritual allows more than one vampires to partake in the act and gain the power. Saulot raised his eyebrow. While it made sense, something about Gratiano's story seemed a bit strange to the Antediluvian. Gratiano continued:

"Lasombra's soul was too potent to be kept in one vessel. I wouldn't bear it, nor could I. So, we split my sire's soul. Each of us got a small piece of the soul and the power but it was more than enough for me to become the most powerful Lasombra and after we mangled the Founder's soul like that, each piece was too weak to take any kind of control over its vessel. He was destroyed completely. I didn't lower my generation but I gained enough power to reform my clan and the vampire world. I gave my brethren freedom to choose their own path. This is what happened that night, Antediluvian."

Saulot smiled and said:

"You are smart, I have to admit. You would make a great ally. But I don't trust you, Gratiano. You are too ambitious and not dedicated to the ideals I champion."

"You are mistaken, Antediluvian. I am fully dedicated to your cause."

"How?"

"Well, the remaining Salubri outside the Sabbat are hunted all across the world by the Camarilla. Your light can't protect them at all times. So I offer you a chance to protect them."

"The Lasombra would protect the Salubri? Why?"

"Not my clan. The Giovanni."

For the first time in a long time, Saulot was speechless:

"Giovanni? What? Why would they help us?"

"For I have something that could destroy them all, from old Augustus himself to the least of the whelps his blood produced."

Saulot was intrigued:

"Do tell."

"You are aware, of course, how Augustus drank from your Antediluvian brother Cappadocius. I imagine you saw many things from inside Tremere. But did you see how he was Embraced?"

"I can't say I have. Tell me."

"Well, I didn't have a firsthand view of this momentous event but my sire had. You see, those who are skilled in the art of Obtenebration can travel across space from shadow through shadow. And believe me, that Ercyies has a lot of shadows. Augustus stood on that stone slab, naked as the day he was born while his blood was taken from him and with it, his mortal life. Hmm… do you know Japheth?"

"Of course."

"He cursed Augustus the moment he gave him his Antediluvian's blood. He said, and I quote, _He who partakes of this boon shall forever be judged by this blood and by the will of God. Color this vitae with the deeds of its drinker. Let him sup with his soul every time he feeds. Deliver this blight upon him as the Founder delivers this stigma to us._ "

"Yes, the Giovanni suffer because of this. Their feeding is quite unpleasant for their vessels."

"Oh, but that's not what I was referring to. You see, after Japheth and that black hearted bitch of his drained the Giovanni of his blood, they kept it sealed in a jar, hoping they would use it against their new brother if he betrays them. Which, of course, he did."

The Lasombra smiled, knowing he did exactly the same thing that the Giovanni did, for different reasons, of course. Saulot then said:

"Interesting story. Alas, the jar is lost. I didn't find it in Anatolia."

"Because I have it."

"What?"

"Remember when I told you that those who master Obtenebration can move through shadows anywhere on this world? Well, after my sire's demise, I became a bit… paranoid. Lasombra must remain dead and the practitioners of Necromancy well… they tend to resurrect things and… people. I wanted to acquire those items so that the danger posed by the Giovanni's Necromancy could be averted in case they try something crazy but the spell that Cappadocius put on the tomb was too powerful, even for me, to break. You, however, broke it in an instant."

"You… you were there, in the tomb?"

"Of course I was. I was there, in the shadows. You got what you wanted. So did I. Not only did I recover Augustus's blood but, after that, I also retrieved something else. Something that the Giovanni would… die to get. The True Vessel."

"What? So… you met _him_."

"I did. It wasn't a pleasant meeting but still. Any Cainite who spends that much time with the Serpents can't be pleasant."

Saulot left the couch and approached the window, looking at the blue sky of the day. He then said:

"You would blackmail the Giovanni so that they protect the Salubri?"

"Yes. But not only that. There is something in the night's air and it is not just you and your light. There is something else entirely. I want to be ready for when that something comes for us. Now… I answered your questions, Antediluvian. Answer me one, in return."

"Of course."

 **Alamut, somewhere in the Middle East**

"…and he appeared in the light. The sun was on the sky and he was there. No glamour, no magic, nothing. It was him in the flesh."

The man on the throne left his seat and approached the kneeling vampire who raised his eyes from the ground to see his master's scarred face and pitch black skin. The man had no eyes but it seemed to not hinder his ability to see. He eventually spoke:

"Where is that vampire?"

"In the New World. City called Vancouver."

"Old world, new world, it doesn't matter. What matters is that I found salvation for our clan."

"To… walk in the daylight?"

"No. Even better."


	8. The Sun Rises In The West

**Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada**

Saulot looked at the young sleeping boy in front of him. Ever since he saved Johann, the Antediluvian tried to save him, to return him to life, to erase his pain. Yet, the child was beyond saving, even beyond the powers of a vampire such as him. After he arrived in Vancouver, Saulot hid the boy beneath an old church that became Malkav's haven. The madman swore that he could hear soothing music coming from the sleeping child, so powerful that could calm the Antediluvian's fervors. Because of this, Malkav became highly protective of Johann, not letting anyone but Saulot near him. His brother touched the boy's robe and said:

"He looks good in crimson."

"His music is so good in crimson. Other colors are bland."

"Do you think we can wake him up?"

Malkav didn't answer, his silence frightening Saulot. Eventually, his mad Cainite brother said:

"The boy isn't of our concern now. He has his role to play, true, but now it's not his time."

Saulot was appalled:

"I will never use the boy in our nefarious deeds, brother."

"We will have to."

"I will not."

Malkav then said:

"I need a new body. This filthy cultist whose body I took is almost to the brink of collapse."

"You don't mean to take the child."

"No. His light isn't to be disturbed, especially not by one like me. My new vessel will arrive soon. Follow me, brother."

Saulot was truly frightened. Malkav almost sounded… normal. He knew his Antediluvian brother for so long that he feared him not in his fits of madness but during his fits of normalcy. Malkav led Saulot underneath the chamber the boy slept and the sight of that cellar was truly shocking. Almost a thousand men and women stood kneeling, in a trance, chanting. Saulot said:

"I don't understand."

"The majority of my children are here. Well, the ones that matter. I am afraid, brother. There is an enemy we don't know yet one that is so powerful that could take on both of us. I can feel him. My brood will help us find who he is."

"Did you feel something in your Cobweb?"

Malkav nodded. Saulot then said:

"I will help you with everything, brother."

"That Lasombra… he hides something. Something related to this, I know."

"Of course he does. Yet he claims he owns both Giovanni's blood and the True Vessel. That makes him very powerful. I heard rumors that the ghouls that man the morgues and secret temples of the Giovanni now receive those of my blood, sheltering them for three nights before moving them to another location. So he blackmailed them."

"Gratiano is afraid. I sensed his fear that moment when you talked to him. And I felt his lies like a burning scar on my heart."

"Can you make me see what happened?"

"The ritual is complicated … It will take a lot. I am not strong enough, not in this body. Yet maybe my childer and their childer's childer will help me."

Without Malkav saying a word, each Malkavian in the room went before their Antediluvian and cut their wrist, pouring their vitae over the ancient's head. Saulot watched as his brother's eyes became redder and redder. After each of them bled, Malkav said:

"Drink from me, brother."

Saulot nodded and he bit through his brother's wrist, his mad vitae entering the Salubri's body and making him see things past, present and future, a jumble of images, sounds, smells and feelings, each of them beautiful, each of them horrendous and each of them true. The Dragon opened his third eye and now, he was transposed in a crypt where someone too familiar to him slept, the vampire who had as many names as are shadows, a man whom Saulot knew as Lucien, Laza Omri Baras, the Shadowed One and of course, Lasombra. He laid there, sleeping, his gaunt features making his Antediluvian brother Saulot feel sorry. Yet, this moment would be interrupted by several voices. Gratiano brought a black man who was chained and the chains were imbued with black magic. Behind them, a group of eastern looking vampires followed. Gratiano threw the chained man on the ground and said:

" _The loyal son of our father and founder. Aren't you happy to see the one you love so much?"_

 _"Woe to you, traitor. And to you, murderers, assassins."_

One of the Assamites said:

 _"After we drain your sire, you will follow."_

Gratiano then said:

 _"You are a powerful entity, my brother. Half our clan worship you like you are some kind of god. Well, the ones who survived, anyway. If you swear fealty to our Movement, I shall give you power beyond anything you could possibly have."_

 _"You blasphemer! You dare mock me in front of our maker?"_

Gratiano then scornfully looked at the torpid body of Lasombra and then said:

 _"Your beloved maker made us all slaves. This is what he made. Slaves! Out of me, out of our clan… out of you. A slave who loves the chain remains a slave. Or worse… a dog. But I am not a slave anymore. I am the only free member of our clan! I saw the truth after the blood bond was removed. I saw who our father is. I saw who you are. Join me, Ontai, and you will never be a slave again."_

 _"You are just like the devil who tried to tempt Christ."_

 _"True, true. But still… Isn't the devil God's creation too? I am as much his son as you are, Ontai. Look at you. You are alone. Your little bitch of a childe fled the castle but my own progeny followed her. She will die again soon. Just as you will do if you don't join me."_

Montano shrugged every time Gratiano mentioned his former name, as only the sire called him _Ontai._

 _"I will never become your servant, Gratiano."_

 _"Servant? Brother, you are as addled as a Malkavian. The new clan of the Shadows will never be a clan of servants. As much as I dislike you, you share my blood. Together, we will make our clan free. Or just me, if you are stubborn enough to oppose me."_

 _"I will always oppose you, cur."_

 _"Fine. I admit you are courageous. But also stupid. You see, freedom is all there is. It's more important than blood, than love… than immortality. Now, let's become free!"_

One of the Assamites produced a bag and put it near Lasombra's coffin. Gratiano then proceeded to his dark deed, drinking from his sire. With each drop of blood entering the Methuselah's body, the exaltation increased, reaching a point when the drinker was shaking, his eyes glowing with want. Before the last drop left Lasombra's body, Gratiano then took out a steel knife from the bag, cutting the founder's heart out from his chest. Montano shouted and tried to release himself from the chains yet their magic was very potent. Gratiano then crushed the heart of Lasombra, leaving his supernatural brother in a state of shock. After mixing it with some water and wine, Gratiano said:

 _"Let us gain power more than we ever had before!"_

The vampires drank the mixture and suddenly, they burst into blue flames, howling in pain before their Final Death. Gratiano was shocked, just as Saulot was. Suddenly, Montano started to laugh and said:

 _"Tsk tsk tsk. My rebellious childe! How do you feel, Gratiano?"_

Gratiano realized the awful truth. He then said:

 _"You… who was that?"_

 _"Didn't you feel your brother's blood on your lips? Tell me yourself, my childe."_

 _"Ontai…"_

 _"Yes, Ontai. My loyal son. He gave his existence so that I could be saved. It was his plan, you know?"_

Gratiano realized he has been played for a fool. He didn't perform Amaranth on Lasombra but on Montano. Lasombra then smashed the chains that held him and, after freeing himself, he said scornfully:

 _"I should kill you right now. I should take back the Blood I gave you. But I will not do it."_

 _"Why not?"_

 _"Because you proved yourself true to your nature. You are a cunning, deceiving and horrendously atrocious monster. Just what our Clan needs. You see, my son, the old world is crumbling. Traditions, local customs, family ties, noble blood, even God almighty… These were tools we used to keep the peace and to ensure our domination over the land. But, as you proved, we weren't strong enough to face the tide of change. Let them think you won, Gratiano. Let them think I am no more. Let them think they are free. Play your part in what comes next… As I will."_

Saulot returned and said to his brother, Malkav:

"He's still alive!"

"Indeed, he is. Gratiano lied."

"Of course he did."

"Which means… an Antediluvian is manipulating the Camarilla since the Anarch Revolt…"

"And the vaunted father of the Lasombra was so close to them… They don't even know."

Malkav closed his eyes, seemingly not minding his brother's words. He then said:

"It seems your moves drew the attention of more than just the Camarilla or the Sabbat."

"What do you see?"

 **New York City, New York, United States**

The sewers were wet, smelly and grey, not fitting for the presence of a queen. The woman spoke loudly to the crowd of sycophants that absorbed her every word:

"The light comes for us! It seeks to cleanse us! But are we impure? No, we are not. The Sabbat and even some Camarilla say that this light is punishment sent by God to destroy the wicked. But are we wicked? No, we are not wicked. We are those whose lives were stolen away. Our lives were taken away from us. What did we receive in return? The blood of Caine. We are not wicked. We are what we are. We were made to be like this. It is our very nature, given to us by the blood of Caine. The fire burns everything, yet can it be called evil?"

The group answered in a single voice:

"NO!"

"Exactly. Go forth, children, and do not forget: we are simply the instruments of our lords' will. Revel in that knowledge and gain peace from it. It is something that cannot be changed."

The group of vampires left, leaving the woman behind. Her dark brown eyes then fixated on a crack in the wall. She heard something: a faint whisper.

"What do you want from me? Leave me alone!"

She grabbed her head, almost trying to rip her curly hair. Before she could return to normal, a large torrent of water flooded the sewer she was in. The water engulfed her, but her vampiric body wouldn't allow her to drown. The water fried the electric light sources in the sewer, leaving her in utter darkness. A lesser Kindred would be overwhelmed, but not her. She activated her Auspex and augmented her eyesight, seeing perfectly in the dark. A man swam towards her, stake in hand. The woman then expelled some kind of green substance from her mouth.

An hour later, she was back on the surface. She was wounded and disoriented. After a while, she realized she was in Central Park. The moon shone brightly above New York and she tried to find a nighttime drifter to feed from. She found her attacker, however, after he shot her in the left shoulder with a crossbow. She then said:

"You are an Alastor? You can't even aim for the heart, you bastard!"

The man then approached her and shot her in the other shoulder. She couldn't move her arms. He said:

"You will die tonight, Anathema."

She realized he isn't joking around. Any vampire who survives her acidic poison is a worthy vampire. Her strange application of Thaumaturgy wasn't enough to destroy this Alastor. He was clearly different than the others sent to kill her before him. She then said:

"You can't kill me, child."

Another bolt hit her, this time in the stomach. The bolts were strange projectiles, coated in silver and marked with strange runes.

"Black magic! You stoop as low as to use black magic?!"

Another bolt in the stomach. The pain was incredible. The Alastor said:

"Anything to destroy you, Anathema."

She was desperate. She then resorted to a final trick:

"I AM ANATHEMA! I AM ANATHEMA!"

She looked in his eyes and said:

"I AM NOT ANATHEMA! I AM NOT ANATHEMA! I AM THE MALKAVIAN PRIMOGEN OF NEW YORK CITY!"

The Alastor then started to cry, grabbing his head and shouting:

"No… It's…"

Then, he said:

"Lady Primogen, I… Are you wounded? What happened?"

"Nothing, nothing. Take those things out of me and leave before I kill you."

The Alastor complied and left, leaving her behind, in the park. The wounded Kindred crawled back into a sewer. There, she said:

"Please, let me be… not now, not tonight…"

The voice in her head was getting stronger:

 _"Those of our blood name this the Sword of Malkav. You made him believe a most outrageous lie. But you let him live. A dead Alastor would have incurred the wrath of the Camarilla even more so."_

"Please… let me be."

 _"Yet… this Dementation left you almost bloodless… look how the mighty have fallen… Petaniqua… Or do you prefer to be called Olympias?"_

She was Petaniqua, the infamous Malkavian Methuselah that once, as a human, gave birth to Alexander the Great, now being one of the hunted thirteen of the Red List.

"Please…"

 _"You do not deserve respite, demon. Not after what you've done."_

"I've done nothing wrong! She betrayed me! Everyone betrayed me!"

 _"You sought solace in the Wyrm's bosom!"_

Petaniqua was almost begging:

"She… wouldn't let me give my son the Blood… I…"

 _"Silence, filth! Lick your wounds, for this is all you are capable off. When you are done, seek me out."_

The voice stopped. It gave no indication of where its source was but there was no need. Petaniqua knew.

 **Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada**

"I am unsure of your plan, Malkav. This… woman has the taint of Hell upon her."

"Be that as it may, this grandchilde of mine is an asset."

"A temptress. She begot the most powerful king the ancient world knew and made him conquer everything there was. Her words poisoned her son against his own father and caused so much pain and strife. Like I said, brother, how would you convince such a creature to fight for us?"

"I have something she wants. You see, some of my descendants can be made to follow only though the blood's commands. However, there are several such childer that are beyond the control of the blood. I use certain… incentives to make sure they follow by their own will. No one wants childer such as Gratiano and that awful Giovanni."

Saulot nodded. His brother's lucidity was scary. When not disturbed by fervors and visions, Malkav was a terrifyingly wise and insightful vampire, with a penchant for manipulation. But, then again, each Antediluvian plays his or her own game.

"What will you do about your vessel?"

"You will help me with that, brother."

"Of course."

"A vessel will be brought to me tonight. I will use it to coerce the infernalist bitch to follow us."

"Who is it?"

"You will have to wait and see."

The hours passed. It was day, but that wasn't a problem anymore for the two Antediluvians. In the church above, two men entered and one of them said to the Malkavian Antediluvian:

"We brought it."

"Good. Get it inside."

The two left and returned with a large wooden box, the size of a fully grown adult. One of Malkav's subdued mortals used a crowbar to crack the wooden box revealing a large, golden sarcophagus, covered in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. Saulot read them and said:

"Where did you get that from?"

"After Alexander got ill in Babylon, the Wyrm's bitch wanted nothing more than to turn her beloved son into one of us but my childe Cybele forbade it. He died and the empire he build was divided. Olympias wanted to acquire his body but the Brujah and my descendants feared she would do some kind of ritual to bring him back to life. Thus, she was denied his body. This corpse was buried in Egypt for 400 years before it was stolen by a demented Gangrel who tried to use it as a bargaining chip in his deals with Olympias. However, my childer found him and gave him to the sun while hiding Alexander's corpse until now."

"You want to reincarnate into someone who is dead for more than 2000 years?"

Malkav nodded. Saulot knew that now, his brother's lucid phase evaporated.

In his hideout, Gratiano de Veronese watched television:

 _"Scientists across the world have assured us that the strange luminous phenomenon that caused panic on the globe is nothing more than, quote, atmospheric magnetic storms, quite normal as a serious solar flare happened a few weeks ago. A spokesman for NASA told us that we should expect several aftereffects in the following days, but not one of them would be severe."_

Gratiano turned off the TV, smiling and saying to himself:

"If only they knew."

The Lasombra vampire approached the balcony and looked at the sun above. Suddenly, he started to feel pain in his body as his skin started to blister:

"NO, NO!"

He entered the room again and tried to hide behind the bed. A voice in the room said:

"Why did you lie to me?"

"Wh… what are you talking about?"

It was Saulot.

"You lied to me. You never told me that my fellow Antediluvian Lasombra is masquerading as his childe Montano."

"How could I? The least people knowing, the better. Now, stop it!"

"Know this: if you lie to me again, I will rescind the gifts I gave you and you will burn."

Gratiano felt like his body was returning to normal. His skin was still wounded but he was slowly healing. More importantly, he wasn't affected by the sunlight. Saulot continued:

"What else did you hide from me?"

"Nothing… just this."

"This changes everything. You didn't join because you respected my ideals but for self-preservation."

"Of course! My entire clan would be destroyed if they knew our Father still walks among us."

"Your entire clan? Or just your leadership? You are a legend, the Methuselah who diablerized the Father. If the Father is still among you, no diablerie happened, hence… you are no legend."

"Obvious."

"You want to finish what you started centuries ago, isn't it? You want my help to destroy Lasombra."

"Yes."

"I have no quarrel with the Father of Shadows. He is no enemy of mine."

"One who can manipulate the Abyss as well as Lasombra is enemy to all, not just to me."

"Maybe. But still, hundreds of years have passed since the… diablerie and, unlike Zapathasura, did not plunge the world into madness or anything like that."

"With all due respect, Antediluvian, but do not compare the Father of Shadows to that monster. Lasombra's plans are known only to himself and no one else."

"And you are afraid."

"Of course. I am not a coward but, like you said, I have a sense of self-preservation. Lasombra gave me power, why not fight to keep it? By any means necessary."

"Good. If you want to fight, by all means, fight. But fight alongside us. Tell me, Gratiano, are you afraid of the Tremere?"

"No."

"I want you to capture the Tremere vampire known as LeDuc."

"He's one of the Council of Seven. Why do you need him for?"

"We need a foothold in Europe. This city we are in is not safe as long as we are here. Overseas, things would be different."

"Paris is a deathtrap. Camarilla on one side, Sabbat on the other… even Anarchs want a piece of the action."

"Coordinate the Sabbat of Paris to capture LeDuc."

Saulot left the room. Gratiano then cursed the night he decided to join the Antediluvian but now, he had to respect his obligations. The gift, as Saulot said, can be rescinded.


	9. Gratiano's War

**Paris, France**

The hotel room was incredibly luxurious, as was any haven of the Tremere in the city. Gratiano noticed the large mirror in front of the bed and frowned. His attendant, a far younger vampire, said with an English flavored by a thick French accent:

"This is the best room in the hotel. I hope everything is perfect."

"Everything but that mirror. You do realize that no matter how handsome I am, I can't see myself."

"I know about your clan's… problem with reflections. That mirror was put there to prove that you are truly Gratiano de Veronese. It could have been anyone wearing that face of yours. Now, we know it is truly you. Sorry if we offended you."

"Your master is understandably cautious. I can respect that and I accept your apologies. Tell me, where is he."

"He will arrive shortly. Until then, anything you need, I can give you."

"I need some… refreshment."

"Of course. What type of blood do you prefer?"

Gratiano smiled and said:

"We of clan Lasombra don't have this kind of preference. Your Ventrue allies might notice differences between the blood types, but the Lasombra don't care about that. Blood is blood."

"True, but if I may, sir, I would recommend you this AB we took from a young nun outside Marseille. It is quite exquisite."

"By all means."

The young Tremere left the room. Gratiano used this time to look around the chamber. Everything was made of metal and glass. The Methuselah noticed that even the floorboards were coated with a metallic paint. After a while, the attendant returned with a blood pack on a silver platter.

"Thank you… um…"

"Jacques-Louis Berinder, at your service."

"Thank you, Jacques-Louis. I hope you will be available later, I plan to sightsee. Even though I came from Europe, I never had the opportunity to see the beauties of Paris in detail."

"Of course, sir. My master will arrive soon."

Jacques-Louis bowed before the Lasombra and left again. Gratiano left for the balcony. Paris was truly a wondrous city and even an old vampire like himself had to admire the City of Lights. From the balcony, the Lasombra Cainite noticed the Eiffel Tower standing tall, like a pyramid of light in the middle of the city.

"Do you like our city, Monsieur Gratiano?"

Gratiano turned and saw a tall and pale man with red eyes, wearing an extremely expensive suit. The man had a royal bearing to himself, one that didn't endear himself to the Italian vampire. The Sabbat leader said:

"Absolutely. A most exquisite place."

"Paris is the center of culture and enlightenment in Europe. Some would say, in the world. Oh, I am sorry. I was taken by the beauty of the city. LeDuc, at your service."

LeDuc extended a pale hand to Gratiano. The Lasombra shook his hand and said:

"Gratiano de Veronese."

"I have to say, Monsieur, that your visit is extremely surprising. Especially after your… appearance on Canadian television."

"Oh, that. That was a warning, Monsieur LeDuc. A warning to every Kindred across the globe. Something evil is coming for us all."

"I know about your ideologies. The Sabbat enjoys to share their ideas with the entire Kindred society."

"The vampire who allowed me to walk into the light of the sun is your old nemesis, Saulot the Dragon."

LeDuc frowned:

"We are aware of that. The Antediluvian… escaped my master's control and now poses an immense threat to us. A threat the Camarilla refuses to acknowledge, especially after what happened in the East with the Ravnos progenitor. But I can't let this situation like it is. I spent almost 800 years hunting Salubri. I know everything about them and most importantly, I know how to kill them."

"And I want to help you. I was a prisoner to Saulot and his mad brother Malkav. He forced me to appear on television to show the Kindred world his power. _Everyone will cower before me when they see a founder of the Sabbat walking beneath the sun_. This is what he told me."

"How did he capture you?"

"I was leading a cell of specialists tasked to kill the Antediluvian. My men were killed by those mad Garou prince Siegfried keeps as pets and I barely made out alive. Then, I had to fight the Dragon himself. I am not ashamed to say that he bested me. He can best anyone."

"Interesting, but let us be honest: after you drank from your maker, you became as strong as anyone from the third generation. Is he so powerful as to defeat an equal?"

"No one is equal to him, not even me. This is why I decided to seek you out, Monsieur LeDuc. You are the most efficient Salubri killer in the world. Saulot poses a threat and I wish to exterminate this threat. Now, before you, I declare myself _antitribu_ and a member of the Camarilla."

This revelation shocked the otherwise stoic LeDuc. Gratiano was one of the greatest enemies of the Camarilla and the ideals it championed but such a betrayal of the Sabbat was not to be discarded.

"You do realize that by joining the Camarilla, you will be hunted by your fellow clansmen and former sect mates?"

"Please, I am not a stupid fledgling. I know what I'm doing. We tried to kill Giangaleazzo ever since he left the Sabbat. The same will happen to me, as well. I just want to survive. I learned that surviving means Camarilla."

"Your rationale is correct yet I do question your loyalty. Pardon me for saying something inappropriate but you are well known in the Kindred society as the rebel Lasombra who killed and diablerized his own maker. While I do not doubt the fact that you can be an incredibly powerful ally, I am uncomfortable with considering your conversion true."

"Of course you would do that. I would do that too if you would come to me wanting to join the Sabbat. But do not think I came here without a proof of my loyalty. Monsieur, may I use the phone?"

"Please."

Gratiano approached the phone on the table and called someone:

"It's me. Get the package to the penthouse."

After that, he said to LeDuc:

"My underlings are bringing the proof right now."

"What is it?"

"Something your sect wanted for hundreds of years."

After a while, four men brought a coffin to the room. After they left, Gratiano opened the lid and said:

"I offer you Petaniqua, one of the devilish thirteen of the Red List."

LeDuc saw the woman staked in the coffin and, after cutting her cheek and dipping his finger in her blood, he touched it with his tongue and said:

"It's true. She is Petaniqua. How did you capture her?"

"I fought and defeated her after I escaped Vancouver. She was trying to get in the city in order to reach her grandsire, Malkav the Mad."

"The Malkavians defected en masse since Saulot returned. It seems Malkav's call was heeded even by infernalists. Thank you, Monsieur Gratiano. She will be transported before the Inner Circle and executed for her crimes. You have earned yourself her Trophy."

"Well, I want to be a member of the Camarilla. That is the Trophy I want."

"That is not for me to give. Come to us before the Inner Circle and plead your case. If they deem your desire to be true, you are welcomed to be one of us."

Suddenly LeDuc started to cough blood and fell on the floor. He said:

"Wh… what is happ… agh!"

"Well, you Tremere are not the only ones skilled in Thaumaturgy. You might have developed it but some took it to a whole different level. Such as… inducing catatonia through blood contact?"

"You… tricked…"

Gratiano approached the coffin containing Petaniqua and removed the stake from her chest. She then jumped off the coffin and started to laugh hysterically. Jacques-Louis entered the room after he heard the former Queen of Macedonia's laughter and said:

"Master?"

"Jac… kill… Gra…"

"Yes, Master."

The young vampire took out a stake of his own but instead of attacking Gratiano or the woman with it, he stabbed LeDuc in the chest with it.

"Ha! Did you see that? He betrayed him right here, right now!"

"Well, I Dominated him to do that. If your plan would have failed, this was my plan B."

Gratiano then staked Jacques-Louis and, after putting LeDuc in the coffin, he put Jacques-Louis on top of him. He then said to Petaniqua:

"An hour until sunrise. We'll move them in the morning. Less complications."

 **Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada**

Saulot was watching Johann when someone spoke:

"They did it. They have LeDuc."

"Good."

"A risky gambit… using Gratiano for this."

"Not as risky as using that infernalist as bait."

"True, but Petaniqua couldn't resist, not after seeing this…"

A shambling mummy approached Saulot. It was wrapped in dirty bandages with only a golden mask its only adornment. Saulot looked at it and said:

"Why would she still care about this corpse? Those of my blood are capable of resurrections but only when the corpse is fresh, not after 2000 years of death and decay."

The mummy said:

"My childe Cybele gave the Embrace to Petaniqua because she was mad, fanatic and utterly without remorse. Nothing good in her, except for the love she had for her son. When he died, she became even madder. She still hopes to restore him to life. As long as I am inside this body, she would be meek and compliant."

"You can't stay inside that for long. Even with my help, it can support you for just a few months."

"Plenty of time, brother."

Malkav then said:

"It seems another gift has come to our doorstep."

Saulot and the mummy which contained Malkav ascended to the church level. There, Gabriel Glover of the Order of Cascadia said:

"My lords Antediluvians, I give you Lambach Ruthven."

A pale man dressed with leather jacket and pants appeared before the two ancients:

"Well done, Gabriel. Leave us."

Gabriel left and Saulot said to Lambach:

"Did Gabriel mistreated you somehow?"

"No. We didn't fight. I came here willingly."

"That's good. There is no point in fighting us, Lambach. I don't want to harm you. I simply wanted to talk."

Lambach nodded.

A few nights later, Gratiano de Veronese and Petaniqua returned to Vancouver with the two captured Tremere. Saulot noticed with disgust the sick adoration the Malkavian woman had for her son's corpse, currently possessed by her grandsire. However, she kept the end of her bargain and would be rewarded, when the time was right. The Salubri noticed that she already started to receive her reward, as she was so close to the mummy of her son. Gratiano noticed that his fellow Sabbat member Lambach was present there and said:

"Jonesing for sun too, Lambach?"

The Tzimisce didn't answer. Gratiano continued to tease him:

"Did they get your tongue? That's what you get for spewing insanities."

Saulot said:

"Fellow children of Caine, the time has come to leave this city behind and move to France. Paris was a warzone between three powerful Cainite factions but due to the efforts of Gratiano and Petaniqua, we removed a major problem from our way."

Lambach then said:

"Paris is currently under the control of Prince Villon. The Sabbat tried to remove him from power several times, yet our efforts were futile. If we are to move there, we need to either kill him or turn him to our cause."

Gratiano laughed:

"We? Remind me, Lambach, but what did you do in this war, except for sitting here? Even the infernalist did more than you."

Petaniqua didn't seem to mind the insult as she was fawning over the mummy of Alexander. Lambach retorted:

"You will see my contribution right now, if you listen. As I said, we need to either kill or turn Villon. Killing would be easier yet turning will achieve more for us in the long run."

Gratiano said:

"And how do you plan to do that?"

"By using that."

Lambach pointed at a coffin that contained a staked woman whose beauty was unimaginable. She had long blond hair and full red lips, looking as innocent as a child. Malkav spoke, through Alexander's mummy:

"This young creature is a childe of one of my blood. Her sire fell madly in love with her and turned her out of lust and passion. And due to the alterations made to her by our Tzimisce allies, her beauty is now otherworldly."

Lambach then said:

"In a few days, the Paris Fashion Week will start. This lovely girl will impress anyone with a combination of beauty, Presence, Dementation and who knows what other stuff we poured into her. Her sole purpose is seducing Monsieur Villon."

Saulot then said:

"He's a Toreador. He can't resist beauty, and we made this beauty to truly be irresistible."

Gratiano said:

"Good. I'm impressed. But are you sure your puppet will do your bidding?"

Malkav said:

"She has been conditioned to do it. She's an important part of the plan but we can't allow her freedom. She must play her part and nothing more."

"Good."

Saulot then said to Gratiano:

"Have you watched television in the plane, Gratiano?"

"No. What happened?"

"Famous actress and television presenter Karen Anatos disappeared without a trace from her home in Los Angeles, California."

"Another one of the Red List, like the infernalist over there."

"Yes. The Order of Cascadia found her after she… what did she do, Lambach?"

"She played truth or dare during an AMA on Reddit. She mistakenly disclosed her location. It was dumb luck, but we have her."

"Plan to turn her to our cause?"

"No. She will be given to the Camarilla for Trophy by one of our accomplices. The Trophy would be an ungodly amount of money… in front of the Inner Circle. But the true trophy would be given by clan Gangrel… an audience with one of their Methuselahs thought long lost."

"Who?"

"Odin."

Gratiano frowned:

"Didn't the All-High die?"

"No, he didn't. He awoke from torpor recently. But you need not to worry about that, Gratiano, for you have another problem. Many in your sect consider you a traitor, a pawn of the Antediluvians. From what we heard, they plan to lure you in Atlanta and kill you there."

"Let them try."

Gratiano left the church and went straight for the airport. A few hours later, he arrived in Los Angeles and then he drove for hours and hours towards Atlanta.

 **Atlanta, Georgia, United States**

"OH GOD! NO! GOD, PLEASE!"

"Now I'm God? When I first came here, I was a _fucking traitor_. See, this is what I like about cutting someone's tendons: it changes your vision about life."

The bloody man in front of him was almost unconscious after screaming for hours. Gratiano then said:

"Oh, goodness. You have no stamina."

He slit the man's throat and proceeded to the woman tied near him:

"I just made you a widow… how about that?"

"Mmmmm…mmmm"

"Oh, sorry. Is the gag too tight? I thought you church-going ladies of the South like it rough. Saints in the streets, whores in the sheets, no? Okay, cross-burning, racist saints, just like any other in these rebel states."

"Mmmmm….mmmm"

"I meant to ask: what's it with you southerners and burning crosses? Are you so sick in the head that seeing a man burning on a cross gets you off?"

"Mmmm…mmmm"

"Uh, okay. I didn't think about THAT answer."

Gratiano then stabbed the woman in the heart. A few minutes later, his phone rang:

"Hello?"

 _"Where are you?"_

"I just finished killing congressman… what's his name and his whore of a wife."

 _"I thought you were killing those who wanted to kill you, not innocents."_

"Ghouls are hardly innocent, especially ones as devious as those two bastards. But anyway, they will enjoy a much better reputation in death than in life. You see, Mr. Congressman here wanted to extend some rights for African Americans but poor man and his wife were tortured and killed before that plan could turn into a law."

 _"What? Isn't Dralik the most racist guy in Congress?"_

"Do you know about an organization called CSPF?"

 _"Christian… something, no?"_

"No. Conservative South for Protection of Families. They seek to uphold Christian values in the South."

 _"But…"_

"But they are all ghouls. Well… were. I didn't know Southern values involve drinking blood but hey… who I am to judge? Anyway, tell Saulot that I dealt with all the ghouls in higher places. Now I'm going after the vampires."

 _"Be swift."_

After another hour of driving, Gratiano smiled while hearing the radio:

 _"Congressman Anthony Dralik and his wife Katy were violently tortured and killed today in their own house in Atlanta in what would go down as one of the bloodiest day for a city in America. Twenty-six men and four women were killed in a mass-murder spree involving torture and even rape with Anthony and Kate Dralik being only the latest victims."_

"Now you're calling splitting a woman in half rape… tsk tsk."

 _"Apparently, the congressman and his wife died due to a politically motivated act as the lawmaker wanted to extend the rights of African Americans in his state. Ken Lewis, political analyst, declared a few moments ago that **despite Dralik's checkered past when it came to racial equality, he was on the right track now and that his segregationist views were nothing more than campaign promises.** A scary thought: to be murdered when wanting to do the right thing. America, let's pray for those whose souls departed this world today."_

"Amen, Jesus!"

Gratiano's phone rang again:

"It's illegal to drive and talk to the phone at the same time so…"

 _"You are dead!"_

The Lasombra smiled. Now, he knew his deed hit the spot.

 **Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada**

"Gratiano is a madman. He killed 30 today. Does that man have no regard for his own Humanity?"

"He's a Lasombra and a Sabbat. I believe he was too soft on those ghouls. Usually, when a Sabbat does something like this, is far worse."

"You are right, brother. He's a powerful ally but he's… too deranged."

Lambach Ruthven interfered:

"I wouldn't call him deranged. He does what he has to do. Besides, it's good for the cause."

Saulot then said:

"You seem rather… enthusiastic about what we do. And considering your history, I don't think it's because you love your clan so much that you want to get revenge for the Tremere's crimes against them."

"You would be too if you'd have seen the things I saw."

"I can only imagine."

 **Atlanta, Georgia**

Gratiano's suit was ruined, so he was forced to discard it. In one hand, he had a revolver while in his other hand had a sword. A vampire tried to stake him but the Lasombra cut off her hand and shot her in the head with the gun. Another tried to attack Gratiano with a Potence-infused punch but the far older vampire ducked and the attacker got stuck with his hand in the wall, easy prey for Gratiano's sword. The Methuselah looked at the remaining vampires: when he began his attack, they were 36. Now, only 4 remained. Suddenly, one of them shot another with his SMG.

"Shit, he is Dominated!"

Gratiano took advantage of the distraction and killed the remaining Cainites with ease. A fourth generation vampire who was active for centuries was too strong for freshly Embraced shovelheads. However, Gratiano felt something: an incredible sensation of dread, something he didn't feel in centuries. He looked in every direction, trying to pinpoint the source of that sensation. Eventually, the source came to him in the form of a dark skinned man wearing a black cloak who approached Gratiano and said:

"I see you didn't lose your touch."

Gratiano knew this moment would come in this war, but not now. He wasn't ready. He realized that those fledglings were nothing more than pawns in the hands of a god.

"I… thought you were with the Camarilla."

"It is so much chaos in this world… allegiances change with each minute of each night. For example, you were the worst enemies of those whom you call Antediluvians yet now you bow before two of them."

"I don't bow to them. I simply fight alongside them. Just as I did when I fought with the Anarchs… When I diablerized my father…"

"Ah, I see. Truly, walls do have ears."

"If you want to kill me, just do it already."

"Give up so easily, Gratiano?"

"Take my blood already and spare me your arrogant words."

"Your blood will stay in your veins, at least for now. I have watched you these last few weeks… You are different than before. More… involved. You are not just the puppeteer, you are there, at the front line. I respect that. Of course, I knew those filthy beings were no match for you but still. You performed superbly."

"I don't need your praises, Montano."

"You always told me that I never acknowledged your strength. Now I do it and you are mad about it?"

Gratiano remained silent. _Montano_ then said:

"You are doing the work of God, Gratiano. Eliminating the filthy Tremere. It attracted the attention of many others, you know?"

"I suppose so."

"You will need to turn your attention towards the Assamites. Ur-Shulgi arose."

"I know. Some Assamites want to join the Camarilla while others want to join Saulot."

"Make sure all of them join Saulot."

"What? Since when do you support the Warlord?"

"Since I realized he has the power of destroying the Tremere."

A mass of shadows engulfed _Montano_ and he left without a trace. Gratiano frowned and left the warehouse not before torching the Cainite corpses.


	10. Interview with two Vampires

**Kansas City, Missouri, United States**

Gratiano tied the ghoul to a chair and gagged him while torturing him with a hot knife:

"You thought this would end quickly, right? Well, you made me follow you across what, three, four states? It will not end quickly, believe me."

"Mhmmmmm!"

"Here's something interesting I found in your late wife's purse… Some kind of invitation to a meeting in Richmond, Virginia. To celebrate the heroes of the Confederacy? Hmm, I didn't know rebels can be called heroes when their rebellion failed."

"Mhmmm!"

"What did you say?"

Gratiano removed the gag from the ghoul. He said:

"THEY WERE HEROES! THEY WERE FIGHTING FOR A NOBLE GOAL!"

"For what? Slavery?"

"STATES… RIGHTS!"

"So, you say the Civil War wasn't because of slavery but because of… states' rights?"

"TO… PRESERVE OUR WAY OF LIFE!

"Gosh… Sounds so stupid I have to gag you again."

"Mhmmmm!"

"Well, I'm telling you: as a guy who fought on rebels' side, I kind of feel for your Confederate fellows. But we fought for freedom while you boys fought to prevent others to be free. Your way of life is nothing more than an expression of something that I hate: domination! Look at this shit… _The south will rise again_. Where? Top ten illiterate states? Top ten racist states? If that is where the south will rise again, congratulations, you made it! And I've got a prize for you!"

The ghoul died immediately after Gratiano cut his belly. The vampire blood inside him wasn't enough to keep him alive for long. The Lasombra Methuselah then felt a presence that has become too familiar:

" _Montano_ … I don't have time for you."

He then said towards another room:

"Come out and face me, shithead."

A deformed figure appeared before Gratiano, emerging from the shadows. It was a Nosferatu vampire. He said:

"Please, I didn't do anything!"

"Really? A hunter attacked me in Mobile, Alabama. He said, after I pulled his guts out, that the organization he works for received an e-mail containing a list with names. People known to be vampires. My name was on that list. It was you, asshole. However, you little plan didn't work. As you can see, your little ghoul led me straight to you!"

"Please, Archbishop, I…"

"Enough with the lies. Who do you work for?"

"Screw you!"

Gratiano then beheaded the Nosferatu with his sword. Behind him, a shadowy mass appeared, speaking softly:

"Stop playing with those miserable creatures."

"Fuck you."

"Enough! I told you to seek the Assamites. Instead, you went to the opposite direction. Georgia, Alabama, Texas, now Missouri… Where to next? Oh, don't tell me… Louisiana. You plan on eating some of that gumbo?"

His sire's sense of humor annoyed Gratiano who said:

"None of your business. And stay away from me."

"Oh, but it is my business, my childe. I have nothing against you destroying your enemies but for Christ's sake, do it faster. You spent the last month hunting ghouls and lowlife Cainites all over the place and even though I told you over and over again to seek the Assamites, you did nothing. And now, you spent an entire evening talking politics and torturing ghouls. Get the damned Assamites on board!"

"Why do you fear Ur-Shulgi so much?"

"I don't fear that creature. I fear that creature's masters. Ur-Shulgi is nothing more than a puppet with demons pulling his strings."

"He claims to do the work of Haqim."

"If _Haqim_ is another name for the devil…"

"Please… That Ur-Shulgi fellow justifies his evil just as we justify ours. We are not different except for the fact that I can walk into the daylight and he cannot. And if by miracle or devilish machination he will gain this advantage, I will fight him and then kill him."

"Ur-Shulgi is far older and stronger than you."

"He's fourth generation like me."

"I am not sure he is even vampire. He's something more. Go and seek the Assamites, Gratiano. Bind them to Saulot. Bolster your forces and destroy everyone who stands in your way."

"And where should I found them? At the convenience store? _Hello, miss, can you give me two Assamites, please_?"

"Very funny… After Ur-Shulgi rose, he killed those of his clan who still follow Islam. That included Jamal, his brother. Many Muslim Assamites fled to the United States. The Camarilla believes a large concentration of them are hiding on the East Coast. I managed to track down one of their leaders, a sixth generation Cainite named Jalal. He is currently hiding in Rutland, Vermont. Go there and negotiate with him."

Gratiano didn't say anything.

 **Nantes, France, a day later**

RECORDING STARTING

"Monsieur Bonaventure, thank you for your cooperation. We will start recording immediately. Are you comfortable with us talking in English, for the purpose of the interview?"

"Absolutely."

"Tell me about yourself."

"My name is Alphonse Bonaventure and until last month, I was head surgeon at the National Hospital."

"Good. Tell me about the… supernatural happenings you experienced at the National Hospital, if you can."

"Let me tell you something, Mr. Beckett. My friend recommended you as a top specialist in the occult but I don't think you would believe me either. Now, before you think I am some kind of religious nutjob, I'll tell you, I am an atheist. I don't believe in God nor miracles. I still am. Because what happened there was not God's work. It is something else."

"I am not assuming anything. Describe me the events, please."

"On the 23rd last month, an ambulance brought us a child. He was playing with his friends in the street and he was hit by a truck. He was brought in at 7:12 PM with massive internal injuries and brain hemorrhage. We tried to save him but… he was declared dead at 7:43. At 7:46, the mother suffered a manic episode and we had to sedate her. From 7:46 until 7:52, the child's body was left alone in the intensive care room."

"I see."

"At 7:49, one of the nurse noticed a man entered the intensive care room. We don't allow people from the outside in there and clearly he wasn't a doctor nor one of the hospital personnel. The nurse went after him in the room. It took her just nine or ten seconds to reach the room. No man was in there… and also, no body."

"Do you think the man stole the boy's corpse?"

"Who else? But I can't explain how that man could have stolen a body in ten seconds and then take off without being seen?"

"Do you have surveillance cameras in the area?"

"We don't unfortunately. Not that it would matter. A being like that wouldn't get caught on camera."

"A… being?"

"A human being couldn't have taken off with a dead child in ten seconds from a hospital room… The windows were closed, Mr. Beckett. And he didn't leave the room by the door."

"Oh…"

"You don't believe me. But that's the truth."

"I believe you."

"Yes? Well… I guess you believe me… considering that the kid reappeared in the intensive care room… alive and without any injuries…"

" _L'enfant du miracle_."

"Yeah, the press likes its pompous titles. There was another case of a boy who came back to life in Texas, in the US. Fell from a horse, broke his neck… then he was fine."

"What do you think happened? Your honest opinion, please."

"If I tell you, you will consider me mad…"

"If I would have considered you mad, we wouldn't have this conversation. Please, tell me."

"I think… it was a vampire."

"A… vampire? How so?"

"After the child was found, we ran countless tests on him. We found traces of foreign blood in his mouth, throat and stomach."

"Did you analyze the blood?"

"We did but… it was… strange. The blood was nothing like human blood. I don't know what they did with it because I quit the next day."

"How did you come to the conclusion that a _vampire_ was involved in the boy's resurrection?"

"My son studied myths and folklore. He still has books at home. It makes sense. A vampire is the only mythological being in European folklore that drinks blood or in this case, exchanges blood. Each country names it differently but it's still a vampire. A few days later, I received a strange visit from an Italian priest. I think he saw this happening before. I told him about vampires and he said that it's possible."

"Vampires drink blood, not save lives."

"Maybe this one is different."

"Tell me, monsieur, do you still have the books that you used to… learn about vampires?"

"Of course. I have them right here."

SOUND OF PAPER PAGES TURNING

"Interesting. May I borrow this book?"

"Sure. Like I said, it was my son's but he is now in England. I'm sure he won't mind. I have to say, that book was the most interesting."

"How so?"

"It spoke of strange, almost bewildering things yet… it makes sense. It speaks of secret societies of bloodsuckers that control the world, of sects of vampires that war against each other. Sounds like a horror script but… something about it makes sense, really."

"Well, I will study it and then call you back. If you have any more questions, you may call me Monday to Friday from 6 PM to 10 PM at this number.

WRITING HEARD

"Thank you, Mr… Samuel. Samuel Beckett!"

"My parents were fans."

"Great, great! Au revoir, monsieur!"

"Au revoir."

RECORDING ENDING

Three hours later, Beckett was in a seaside bar in Saint-Nazaire when someone came to him and said:

"Samuel Beckett? Really?"

"I needed a first name. What do you think about this book?"

Beckett handed the book to a dark skinned man wearing a purple suit. After inspecting it, the man said:

"This was printed recently. I can still smell the ink."

"The doctor said the book was his son's. That he had it for years."

""Bullshit. Or maybe it was switched."

"It says too much about us. And all of it is true."

The other man started to read from it and then said:

"Whoever wrote this was either one of us or a ghoul. Though I'm leaning towards a Cainite. The info is too intricate. Check this out: _in 1493, the Convention of Thorns ended the first Anarch Revolt._ "

"Yes, clearly written by one of us. But why?"

"To expose us, certainly."

"The one who wrote this is either crazy or stupid or both. However, this is not my problem now. My problem is the one who bring dead children back to life."

"A Salubri, for sure."

"Since this Antediluvian talk started, the Salubri are becoming bolder. First, I heard rumors that Saulot is in Romania with the Inconnu. Then I heard he is in Vancouver. Then, Gratiano de-bloody-Veronese appears on live television in the middle of the day. Then, a massacre happened in Atlanta, Georgia. Every member of a Christian organization that happened to also be ghouls for the Sabbat were tortured and killed. Gratiano was involved, I'm sure of that."

"Do you think he threw his lots with Saulot?"

"Clearly. He gave Gratiano daylight. What more could a Kindred want?"

"Fuck me if I know. Give one of us the sun, endless supply of blood and he still wants more. It's in our nature. So, where to, Beckett?"

"I think I'll go back to the States."

"For what?"

"A friend of mine informed me that he tracked down a Toreador _antitribu_ named Abdul."

"Who's he?"

"I suspect he might be the fifth generation vampire known as Ibrahim, a childe of Iontius."

"Oh… Iontius."

"Anyway. Let's talk another time. Goodbye, friend."

Beckett shook his friend's hand and left the bar. He took out his phone and said:

"Prepare the plane. We go back to the US."

Suddenly, Beckett felt something entering his chest. Before he could react, he fell unconscious to the ground.

 **Paris, France**

"Mr. Beckett, I apologize for bringing you here this way but I was afraid you would not cooperate if we asked nicely."

Beckett noticed he was in a luxurious suite at the top of a tower. He looked at the window and started to shout:

"CLOSE THE BLINDS! CLOSE THE FUCKING BLINDS!"

"Easy, Mr. Beckett. How many years passed since your last sunrise?"

Beckett opened his eyes and looked at the blue sky. He then said:

"Saulot."

The Antediluvian appeared before him, followed by a mummy which moved very slowly. The Gangrel said:

"I didn't know you dabbed in mummy magic."

"What… Oh, this is my brother, the one you know as Malkav."

The mummy then said:

"Gangrel."

"Charmed… So, what do you want from me?"

"To talk, of course. You see, I intend to collect those of our blood that are more… intellectual in nature and desire more from unlife than just to quench their thirst for blood. In the last hundreds of years, you uncovered many of our secrets. Consider this a chance of a lifetime… or two, in our cases: an interview with those you name… Antediluvians."

Beckett smirked and said:

"Very well."

"You are very trusting, it seems."

"I don't look a gift horse in the mouth. If you want to talk and if you swear to me that after we talk, I will be able to leave unharmed, I will be more than happy to… interview you."

"Of course. I swear. I suspect you want to record our interview. By all means, do it."

Beckett checked his pockets and noticed he still has his recorder. After he prepared it, he said:

"It's all set. First, tell me who you are."

"I am Saulot of clan Salubri, childe of Enoch, childe of Caine, child of God."

"I am… Malkav."

"For the record, Malkav is also a childe of Enoch and a childe of Caine."

"And a child of God."

"Uh… yes, Saulot. May I call you Saulot?"

"Of course. This is my name."

"Good. So… uh…what is your intention for the Kindred world?"

"Peace, of course."

"Peace?"

"Yes. Peace."

"Between whom and whom?"

"Between the sects that are dividing our kind, between us and the other supernatural races of this earth and most importantly, between us and the humans."

"Humans don't know about us. Most of them, anyway."

"Once, they knew. We lived as one."

"They were your food."

"True. But I never hurt them for my own pleasure, unlike my other immortal brethren. I gave them paradise in our city."

"Tell me about the city of Enoch."

"Oh, yes. Our home, our true home. You see, before we were scattered all over this world, we lived in the city of Enoch. What do you want to know? How beautiful and harmonious were its gardens? The palaces? How it was the first bastion of civilization before it was all taken away from us? If so, I can speak for days on end about it, though I don't think you want to hear flowery descriptions and hyperbolae."

"Not really. I want to know the… essence of things."

"Why?"

"I… need to know something. You see, across my travels I saw many things, things that convinced me that Gehenna is not just a singular event but many and each such event is tied in a cycle of destruction and rebirth and destruction again. I want to know if this can be stopped. If the cycle somehow can be broken. Maybe you had this knowledge in your ancient city."

Saulot started pacing around the room and approached Beckett from behind. He said:

"What do you think is Gehenna? I don't need to know of prophecies and fragments of lost knowledge. I want just your honest opinion."

"It's a mystery to be solved. And if our species can be saved if I solve it, more reasons for me to try."

Saulot smiled and said:

"If you want to save the children of Caine, then we are natural allies."

"Umm, yes. Uh… Malkav? It's this the correct way to call you?"

"It will suffice."

"What is with the mummy body? For the record, Malkav is currently within the body of an Egyptian mummy wearing a mask with what seems to be ancient Greek inscriptions."

"This is Alexander the Great. Or was Alexander the Great."

"So… Malkav has taken over Alexander the Great's corpse. Can you please tell me what happened with you? Did you go into torpor? Or did you remain active in this world? You are one of the most… mysterious ancient so I need to ask you that."

Malkav didn't respond. Beckett couldn't tell if this was because of the mad psyche of the Antediluvian or because he wanted to annoy him. Saulot answered for him:

"Some things are best left unsaid. You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

Malkav eventually said:

"I drifted on the currents of the mind."

"I… understand. The Malkavians deserted the Camarilla the moment you two returned. Are you planning on forming a new sect?"

Saulot said:

"No. There is too much division already in the vampire world. Like I said, I search for likeminded fellows that would help me usher a new age of peace. We suffered enough. Ever since Caine was cursed by the Creator, he and his descendants suffered from endless hunger, pain and loneliness. I want to bring joy."

"Do you believe the myth of Caine?"

"It is not a myth. It's the truth."

"What about what is said in the Book of Nod?"

"True. But of course, you have the right to doubt it… but you weren't there, friend. I was there. I sat with my sire and his sire in the golden palaces of Enoch. Just like Malkav did. Caine tended the fields before his fall into darkness. He raised crops so that his family can eat. He was a caregiver and he fell only because his love for God burned him."

"If the Book of Nod is to be believed, he killed his brother out of envy."

"No. He sacrificed him to the One Above. God demanded only the youngest and sweetest to be given to Him and what did Caine had that was young and oh so much beloved by him? Abel. You see, Beckett, what is the greatest proof of love than renouncing love?"

"I see. Tell me about Lilith."

"A temptress. She gave Caine power but at what cost? Even more hatred from God."

"I must ask you a question that probably is on everyone's lips: is there a God?"

"It must be. He offered us the greatest gift imaginable."

"What? Our curse?"

"No. Golconda."

"Many of our kind consider Golconda to be a myth, a story told by elders to manipulate younger Cainites into doing their bidding."

"Oh, that couldn't be farther from truth. Golconda exists and more importantly, it works."

"It allows you to walk into the sun."

"Not just this. You see, when you walk the path to Golconda, the challenges you face are tremendously difficult yet the reward is invaluable. It is a choice."

"A choice?"

"Yes. I don't know if the choices are the same for every Cainite who reaches Golconda, but I was given three choices: to die and exist for eternity in Heaven, to see the face of God and live in His light. Or I could have become human again, to enjoy the short but simple life of a mortal, with all its good and its difficulties. I chose the third way."

"What was it?"

"To remain an eternal presence on Earth, invulnerable. The sun can't hurt me, the stake can't subdue me. Not even the diablerist can withstand my presence inside him. The cost was great however. I will never die. I will never see God and I will never achieve peace. Yet my powers increased tremendously, beyond anything I could do before."

"Why did you choose to remain forever on Earth?"

"I feared death, Beckett. And I… forgot how to be human. I remained true to what I become and I tried to find succor in an eternal existence."

"What exactly do you need to achieve Golconda?"

"The desire to change. You see, this is why not many vampires can achieve it. We Cainites are beings of stagnation. We don't change. This is why the majority of those who share our blood can't achieve Golconda. To achieve it, one must feel regret and return to Humanity."

"I can see why this is a problem for Kindred. Saulot, tell me about the Baali."

"The greatest enemies of all existence. Cainites who chose to damn their souls even more by consorting with demons."

"How did they came into being? Many vampires say that they were your creation."

Saulot returned to his seat, in front of Beckett and said:

"Unfortunately, it's true. I created them but not by will."

"What happened?"

"Let me tell you a story. Cainites of old, such as us the Antediluvians and our sires, have this power of… giving form to emotions. Each feeling we possess can be made into something else, something physical, tangible. It is something the childe of Caine Irad tried to do: to focus all his evil into one foul mass and expel it from himself."

"It is said that the Tzimisce Antediluvian was Embraced that way."

"Exactly. You see, he poured all that evil inside a being, while Embracing it. I wanted to expunge it from myself and then destroy it completely. But tell me, Mr. Beckett, can you destroy hate itself? Can you destroy fear? Can you destroy evil? You can't. However, you can try to contain it somehow. I, for the lack of a better term, sealed it in a feather. A dark feather taken from a crow. That feather was given to one of my fellow Antediluvians, a man I trusted more than almost anyone else."

"Who was that man?"

"You know him as Cappadocius. I know him as Sargon, his real name, the one he had before he became Cainite. Others may know him as Ashur."

"You mean to tell me that Cappadocius was the Antediluvian that created the Baali?"

"Yes."

"Do you know how he did it?"

"Sargon was… an interesting fellow. An intellectual but at the same time, a fanatic. He spoke of salvation long before the religions of the world started to talk about it. He believed he will go to Heaven if he brings salvation to others but he didn't pursue Golconda. Instead, he made an experiment: he wanted to create the most evil being in the world and then to bring salvation to it, to become a Messiah and secure his place in Heaven. But in order to do that, he had to use something as a catalyst."

"That feather…"

Saulot nodded:

"Yes. He didn't want to fail so he tried to create more than one such… specimens."

"The three. The first Baali."

"They have my hatred and the blood of Sargon in their veins."

"Incredible."

"For you, Mr. Beckett. Not for us."

"Are there any other Antediluvians active in the world, besides you and Malkav?"

"I don't know. Probably, they are. Or probably not. I can't say for sure."

Beckett stopped the recording machine and said to Saulot:

"I stopped the device. Answer me a question but be sincere."

"I've been sincere with you our entire discussion, Mr. Beckett."

"How can Gehenna be stopped? Not philosophy, but means to end it. Tell me how and I swear to you that I will help you."

"I don't know. You would need a being with great insight to answer that, one even greater than mine or even my brother's."

"Is there anyone who has a greater insight than Malkav?"

Malkav broke the silence and said:

"Eight hundred years ago, a childe of mine named Tesus ventured in the dark forests of the Carpathian Mountains to fight his Tzimisce enemy. He spent almost his entire blood in the fight and even after he prevailed, he was weak almost to the point of death. He reached a village somewhere near a stream and saw a beautiful young girl washing her clothes in the moonlight. He craved her blood and entered a mad Frenzy. He attacked her, ravishing her and gorging on her vitae. She died. What Tesus didn't know was that the entire scene was seen by the girl's younger brother, a child no more than nine. When my descendant saw the boy, he attacked him too but… when he saw his tiny body covered in blood, he regretted it and Embraced him immediately."

Saulot then said:

"That boy can see the future. All futures. Every possibility."

"And where is this boy? How do we get to him? Is he still among us?"

"Yes. His name is Nicolaus."

"Where is he?"

Malkav said:

"He is in torpor. Last time he emerged, his machinations destroyed an entire village in Mexico."

"What happened?"

"Are you familiar with the history of the Crying Lady? The _llorona_?"

"Yes. A Mexican legend. It is said that a woman fell in love with a prince and he gave her sons. Yet when he cheated on her, she threw their children into a river to spite him and after that, she killed herself too. The villagers left because they believed they are cursed by the woman's deed. Hell, people even say that her ghost could be heard crying on the bank of that river ever since."

"Everything was caused by Nicolaus. The nobleman falling in love to the poor woman, him cheating on her, her mad reaction… My grandchilde used Dementation on them."

"A cruel boy."

"This _boy_ is older than you, Gangrel. A fifth generation vampire trapped in a child's body having a child's mind. He didn't answer my call to come to Vancouver because lies dormant underneath a school in Buenos Aires."

"I will retrieve him."

Saulot smiled. It seems he managed to win a powerful ally.


	11. The Golden Cloud

**Buenos Aires, Argentina**

"Thank you for receiving me on such short notice."

"Not a problem, Mr. Robbins. Though I must be honest, I didn't expect our school to be so well-known in the States that you want to write a book about it."

"Well, your school is one of the oldest educational institutions in Argentina. I'm writing a book about educational techniques in South America."

"Great, great!"

"First, tell me more about yourself."

"There is not much to tell. I am an English teacher since 1989. I love to teach and I love helping students achieve their potential. Though, with some, it is quite a difficult road."

"Why is that?"

"Some students are… let's say… aggressive. I don't want to scare you but our school has a bit of a reputation in the city."

"From what I've heard, some of your students are prone to bouts of violence."

"Yes. You know how it is… a student annoys another, the annoyed one fights back… like in every other school."

"I completely understand. Can I explore a bit?"

"Of course."

The teacher and _Mr. Robbins_ left the office and wandered around the campus. The man noticed a shack in the middle of the courtyard. He said:

"What is that?"

"Oh, that is Rigoberto's room. He is our nighttime groundskeeper."

"I see."

"He's a nice man but a bit weird."

"How so?"

"He refuses to work daytime hours, even though we don't have enough money to pay both him and the day caretaker."

"Maybe he works in another place during the day."

"Probably. I don't know much about him. Principal Garcia could tell you more about him, she is here since 1971."

"Thank you for the advice."

The man's phone rang:

"Excuse me."

"Of course."

 _Mr. Robbins_ distanced himself from the teacher and answered:

"Yes?"

 _"Is that the place?"_

"I don't know yet. Certainly, something strange happens around here. Kids are aggressive and they have a caretaker who refuses to work daytime hours."

 _"Maybe he's one of us."_

"Yes, I think so. I will return here tonight. I'll call you if I find anything of importance."

 _"Do that."_

 _Mr. Robbins_ returned to the teacher and, after he saw the entire campus, he left the school. Nine hours later, he returned and the first place he went after he jumped over the fence was the shack. The man used Auspex to try and locate Cainite auras but he didn't find anything. The shack's door was opened and inside, he found nothing strange, just gardening tools, brooms and a mattress with a pillow and a blanket. Suddenly, a man attacked _Mr. Robbins_ with a shovel and then said:

"Maldito! Qué estás haciendo aquí?"

"Easy, easy!"

"Gringo? Who are you, stranger?"

"My name is Beckett."

"The… historian?"

"Yes, the historian. You know about me so you are Kindred."

"Rigoberto Martinez, childe of Lucius Aurelius Fitor of clan Ventrue."

"Fitor? You are a sixth generation Ventrue _antitribu_ posing as a school groundskeeper in fucking Buenos Aires."

"Si."

"Why is that?"

"None of your business."

"If you seek the ancient, I'm seeking him too."

Martinez frowned but he threw away the shovel. He then said:

"Why?"

"I need his help."

"Estas loco! Even crazier than the Malkavian. That creature doesn't help anyone. It drives the kine children insane around here. Los niños son violentos. All due to Nicolaus and his fucking Dementation."

"He drives kids insane?"

"That monster is asleep. Yet madness oozes from it and poisons lesser minds."

"You didn't manage to find the tomb?"

"I did. Yet the door is magically warded. I can't pass through that."

"But your Sabbat sectmates didn't try to help you?"

"They did. Nothing."

"Well, if you take me to the door, I may be able to get past the wards."

"You? How?"

"I have a special talisman. It will extinguish the magic, at least for a time."

"I see… well, it seems only natural that I will take it for myself. Adios, Beckett!"

Before Rigoberto could attack Beckett, the Gangrel staked the Ventrue, moving so fast that not even the experimented Argentinian vampire could notice.

"I figured out you would try something like this. Now…"

Beckett took out a small stone from his pocket and put it on the staked vampire's forehead. He then closed his eyes and said:

"Good, now I know where the tomb is. Seems to me that this stone provided by Malkav really works. Sorry, buddy. If you would have played nice…"

The Noddist then entered the school. He didn't have to worry about security cameras, as Saulot's Nosferatu accomplices managed to hack them. He then entered an old, disuses classroom. Beckett took out a stethoscope and listened to noises coming from underneath the floorboards. He then ripped a few pieces of it and noticed a staircase below. Beckett then switched on his flashlight and descended the stairs. He then was in front of a massive stone door, covered in strange runes. Beckett then searched his backpack for a piece of pink paper covered in arcane inscriptions:

"Well, here goes nothing."

He touched the paper to the door and a bright purple light emerged from it, opening the door. Saulot said to him that the door will close after three hours, so Beckett believed he had plenty of time to retrieve the dormant vampire. Inside the tomb, a stone sarcophagus with a golden lid stood in the middle, flanked by braziers. The Gangrel lit those braziers and after their light invaded the tomb, he could see drawings on the tomb's walls.

"After I take you out of here, I will study the hell out of this place."

Beckett then took another piece of pink paper and put it on the lid of the sarcophagus. It opened, revealing a thin child with long auburn hair and pale skin, with a pug nose and purple lips. He was dressed in rags mirroring the dress style of Mexico during that country's revolution. Suddenly, the boy opened his eyes. They were bright purple. Beckett felt a sharp pain in his temples and fell on his knees. The boy arose from the sarcophagus and started to shout, but it didn't sound like a child shout. It was more an animal shriek. Beckett's ears almost burst and the mere shock of that shout threw him five meters away. The child was a fifth generation vampire, incredibly powerful and completely mad. How the Antediluvians hoped to tame this creature, Beckett didn't know. The Gangrel recomposed himself and said:

"Your sire needs you."

A powerful punch to the gut sent Beckett flying through a marble statue. He was hit by ancients before but this child's strength was far greater than anyone's he faced before. His vampire body started to heal almost immediately but another punch threw him into the wall. Suddenly, Nicolaus was distracted by the talisman on the door. He then ripped it, closing the tomb and sealing himself and Beckett in there.

"Oh… shit…"

Beckett realized that as a freshly reawakened vampire, Nicolaus was thirsty and human blood simply won't do. He feared the ancient Malkavian will drink from him. The boy grabbed Beckett by the throat and tried to bite him, however the Gangrel used his Celerity to escape to the other side of the sarcophagus. Nicolaus caught him and scratched him with his fingernails across the face. Beckett felt them as iron claws. Severely weakened, the Noddist entered the sarcophagus, closing the lid and using his last remaining talisman to seal himself in. He could hear Nicolaus screaming, trying to reach Beckett but the Gangrel was safe inside, hoping to regenerate enough in the three hours the talisman bought him. After a while, the screams and the hits on the sarcophagus' lid stopped. Beckett used his Auspex trying to detect Nicolaus and he realized the Malkavian is above ground, feeding on Rigoberto. The Gangrel immediately broke the seal, leaving the sarcophagus and ran towards the exit, hoping to stop Nicolaus before his strength could be replenished. Beckett realized that if he couldn't handle a weakened Nicolaus, a juiced-up Nicolaus would be impossible to stop. Not only that he will the Noddist but also he will escape into the city, breaking the Masquerade into pieces. Reaching the schoolyard, Beckett grabbed a wooden branch from a tree and tried to Obfuscate, hoping to stake Nicolaus from behind but his grasp on the Discipline was weak and the far more skilled vampire child detected him easily. He stopped drinking from the Ventrue and continued to beat Beckett. Now that he managed to feed, even a bit, Nicolaus was far more powerful than before and Beckett realized that he had only one last hope: to use Protean. He then turned into a wolf and tried to fend Nicolaus' hits with his claws and fangs. The Malkavian then decided to stop with the melee combat and proceeded to focus his Dementation upon Beckett. What the Gangrel felt is impossible to be described into words. Thousands of colors invaded his mind, some of which he didn't have a name for. Sounds, screams, music, even pain. He seemed to have been victim of a powerful sensorial overload produced by Nicolaus' Dementation. Beckett then focused, remembering the discussions he had with his friend and travel mate, Anatole. While not a practitioner of Dementation, Anatole knew enough about it to teach Beckett some counters. Beckett then reached inside himself and tried to draw out his inner Beast. He managed and the raving monster inside him broke the Dementation, freeing Beckett's mind. He was spent. His wolf form was dissipated and he spent almost all his blood on drawing the Beast out. He was on his back in the grass, looking at the sky. Nicolaus then appeared before his eyes, mouth opened to reveal his fangs. Beckett then realized it was over. However, the Beast inside him thought otherwise and suddenly, Beckett grabbed the child's long hair and proceeded to bite his neck. The moment his tongue touched Nicolaus' vitae, the Noddist felt like fire was entering him, like he was floating on a golden cloud. He wanted to stop, but he couldn't. He grabbed Nicolaus' shoulder with his other hand and started to drink deeper. The boy was screaming but it didn't matter for Beckett. Nothing matters when you drink ancient blood. It started as heat but it evolved into sweetness. For the first time since he was human, the Gangrel felt sweetness in his mouth, a sweetness that slowly made his way from his mouth through his long dead esophagus and into his dried out stomach, where it became fire again. If Heaven was real, this was it. Cappadocius wanted Heaven, Saulot wanted it even more but what did they know? Beckett now felt it. There is no heaven like having ancient blood in you, a blood that was almost finishing yet the Gangrel didn't stop. A while later, Beckett felt he wasn't drinking blood anymore, but something else, something that was not liquid, not even tangible. Something so intense and luminous that made even the sun feel dim. Nicolaus' screams turned to moans and the moans turned to silence. It ended. Beckett then passed out.

 **Paris, France**

Beckett returned to unlife after a long sleep. He got out from the bed and noticed he was in the Paris hotel he met the Antediluvians days before. It was night. Saulot appeared before him and said:

"What have you done?"

"I… my head!"

Beckett grabbed his head in pain. Saulot said with a severe voice:

"Look into the mirror and you will see what you have done."

Beckett did as commanded and what he saw, it frightened him. His eyes, red as fire before, were now purple. He started to shake. Saulot said:

"I don't agree with your deed and neither my brother, but it couldn't be helped. It is my fault that I sent you there, unprepared to face one like Nicolaus. But now, you can face and defeat many enemies. Congratulations, Mr. Beckett. You are now a fifth generation vampire."

"Oh no…"

Beckett now knew why he felt so charged with power: he diablerized the boy.


	12. Three Brothers

**Chicago, Illinois, United States**

The halls of the university were quiet except for the man who paced through the corridors. Someone approached him and that woman said with a softly, almost whispery voice:

"Sir, who are you seeking? If it's a student, you must know that you aren't allowed to speak with any student, especially during the exams."

The woman gasped a bit when looking at the man, but managed to find her composure. The man said, with a calm voice:

"I want to go to the philosophy hall."

"Ah, I see. The third door on the right."

"Thank you."

The man approached the door and knocked. A voice inside said:

"Come in, please."

The man opened the door and entered the room where a dozen young men were sitting in a semicircle around an old man with a beard, dressed in an impeccable dark grey suit. The old individual removed his glasses and said to his students:

"Please, excuse us."

The two men left the room and the old man said:

"We can't talk here. Let's go to my office."

The other nodded.

After the two entered the office, the visitor said:

"Someone interesting in this year's batch?"

"Oh, you know how it is. Some senator's son, an heir to a major European noble family… ah, and a cardinal's _nephew_."

The emphasis on _nephew_ made the visitor realize the true situation. The professor continued:

"However, only a few have a true knack for my ideas. I'm seriously considering getting them to… know me properly."

"You didn't tell them about us?"

"Not yet. I wanted to know them better first. So, enough about that, what are you doing here, friend?"

"I heard that Gangrel Beckett visited you. Where is he?"

"Indeed, he visited me but that was a long time ago. I don't know his current whereabouts. May I ask why are you seeking him?"

The visitor frowned:

"I want to kill him."

The professor raised his eyebrow:

"Why would you want to do that?"

"He diablerized my childe."

"Beckett? Heh…"

"What's so funny?"

"I never thought he would be such a diablerist to seek a fifth generation Kindred and drink from him. But then again, I never bothered to check his Aura. Nor that I care what that fellow is doing in his spare time."

"I do care! He took my childe's blood! I want him dead!"

"You have the right to want that but I must ask you, Tesus, why do you pursue such a… lowly goal as revenge? I heard your sire summoned all of your kind to him. Why didn't you heed his call?"

"What he wants is his own business, not mine. My business is Beckett. The moment I felt my childe's soul being devoured by that monster, my blood boiled. I want him dead, Critias, and you will help me."

"Pardon me, but how? I am a Primogen of Chicago not a tracker. Besides, Beckett is a fellow intellectual. There are so few of us left in this world. True intellectuals, that is. Nowadays, any fool who writes e-books is considered genius. So, so… unpleasant."

"I don't give a flying fuck about your philosophy, Critias! I yearn for vengeance and you will tell me where he is or else!"

"Or else what? You'll kill me? There would be no need for that. I'll tell you. He is in Paris. With Saulot and your beloved sire. You see, Tesus, this is why it would have been better for you to go to Malkav."

"I don't care! I will kill my sire if I have to, only to get my hands on that fucking asshole!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk… This New World really changes people. Such crass words have no place in my haven, friend. You'd do well not to use them again."

Despite his friend being a fourth generation Cainite, Critias was very firm. Of course, the years of experience made the Brujah more than a match to the Methuselah but fortunately, it would not be a fight. Tesus left. Outside the university, the Malkavian looked at his gaunt face in the water of the fountain. The same purple eyes that Nicolaus had looked back at him.

 **Providence, Rhode Island, United States**

Gratiano entered the hotel while trying to clean the sleeves of his suit. He was wet because of the rain. He noticed that behind the hotel receptionist were mirrors. He frowned. The Lasombra knew the place was a Kindred establishment and more importantly, a Camarilla Elysium. Fortunately, Gratiano expected that and tried to employ his usual tactic that he used whenever he travelled through Camarilla cities. He focused and suddenly, the people in the lobby started to disperse, shaking. The Methuselah then approached the receptionist and said:

"Room 203."

The man nodded and gave the Cainite the required key. In the elevator, Gratiano fed on a woman, trying to replenish the blood he lost when he used both a high level Presence and Dominate earlier. The Lasombra reached the room and entered, finding it luxurious but occupied. The Italian vampire went to the man and, after extending his hand, he said:

"Senator, I am very glad that we could meet."

The senator, a middle aged man with a black suit and red tie shook the Cainite's hand and said:

"It is my pleasure, Mr. de Veronese. Though I have to say, I expected someone more… rugged."

"Pardon me?"

"I was informed that you are an 800-something years old man."

"Ah, I see. Well, we don't age. Probably you knew that, considering that you are informed about our existence."

"Indeed. I hope you won't mind if I go straight to business."

"Absolutely not. Time is of the essence."

"Did our mutual friend tell you about my problem?"

"No. He respected your privacy."

"Good. Honestly, I have to tell you, Mr. de Veronese, that meeting you in this room is a bit uncomfortable for me. I hope dirtsheets will not call me a fag in the morning."

Gratiano smiled:

"Senator, using a homophobic slur is a surefire way of getting your political career down the drain."

"Don't patronize me, sir. I know better than you…"

Gratiano grabbed the man by the collar and, after lifting him with one hand using his incredible strength, he said:

"You know shit, _sir_. Like you said, I'm an 800-something years old man. I can assure you, I learned many things in those 800-something years. Tell me what you want and _don't patronize me_!"

He let go of the senator. The human then said:

"Your power is incredible, even more so than the Gathering tells us."

"Ah, I see now. You are with the bloody Gathering. Sorry, I'm not interested in ghouls."

"I do not want to become your ghoul, sir. I want you to turn my son into one of your kind."

Gratiano laughed:

"The gift is not something I give lightly, senator."

"I didn't expect otherwise, Mr. de Veronese. A billion dollars. Half when you say yes, the rest after my child's transformation."

"So this is where the taxpayers' money in your state are going. I do not lack for money but a billion dollars would help me a lot. I accept."

"My son is in room 208. Follow me, please."

"Before that, I want half the money. You said 500 million after I accepted. I did so…"

"Give me your bank account."

After several phone calls, the senator said:

"Done."

"Aren't the modern times beautiful? Come on, show me the boy."

In Room 208, a young boy sat on the bed, dressed in a fine suit. With his supernatural sight, Gratiano noticed the child's pallor. He said:

"Is he sick or something?"

"My boy… suffers from a rare form of cancer. Inoperable. He has just six months to live. You have to understand me, Mr. de Veronese, I don't have the luxury of eternal life. I have to think about the legacy I leave in this world. How I would be perceived after my death?"

"A raging homophobe, I guess."

"You mock but my son is the only hope I have. My wife had three miscarriages before he could be born. I don't want him to die."

"I see. Please, leave me with him. I want to know him before I turn him."

"Of course."

The senator left and Gratiano approached the bed, sitting on a corner and saying:

"What is your name, child?"

"Joseph."

"Joseph, I'm Gratiano."

"What kind of name is that?"

"Italian."

"You're a wop?"

"Oh, foolish me. To think you'd be different than daddy… But I can change that."

Gratiano then called the senator in and, before the man's horrified eyes, drained Joseph of his blood. The Italian vampire said:

"Now, I've done half my job. Before I could do the other half, you will call your buddies in Washington and do whatever it takes to secure the release of a certain prisoner you folks possess."

"What… you killed my boy?"

"Yes, but like I said, it's part of the job."

"Who…?"

"Uh, I have the name written. Hold on…"

Gratiano took a piece of paper and read from it:

"Bini Alman. Weird name."

"Alman? A black man will become president of the USA before we will release that traitor."

"Hey, women are allowed to vote now so I suppose stranger things have happened. I want Alman right now."

"The terrorist is under lock and key in a secret safehouse. Pretty far away from here."

"Where?"

"It's classified."

"Well then, have a good night. Condolences and… ah, thanks for the money."

"Mr. de Veronese, please…. Kansas City, Missouri."

"Shit… Really? I've been there recently. If I knew, I would have sprung out Alman myself."

"I don't think so. That safehouse is the fifth more heavily defended secret area in the US."

"I've fought worse odds."

"Please, sir."

"Oh, all right."

Gratiano bit his wrist and dropped some of his blood in Joseph's mouth. Almost immediately, the body started to shake."

"What is wrong with him?!"

"The blood is doing its thing. Now, until he rises, I want Alman. I don't care how."

The senator sighed and left the room, leaving Gratiano and his new childe alone. The Italian waited patiently until Joseph's father returned, saying:

"I used all my political influence for this, Mr. de Veronese. Bini Alman will be brought to Providence in 48 hours."

"Fine."

"How is Joseph? Did the transformation finished?"

"Um…"

Gratiano took out his sword and plunged it in the senator's heart, killing him immediately. Then, he took out the phone and after calling, he said:

"I need a pilot in Providence, Rhode Island. Available at any time, please."

 _"Fine."_

"Thanks."

Gratiano then took the boy in his arms and walked out the room only to get face to face with two young men.

"Ah… I should have known."

Gratiano threw the boy in the air and, in an instant, caught him before he could hit the floor. The two men were dead, throats slit by Gratiano and his usage of Celerity.

"I suppose these weren't your daddy's bodyguards. A man who was so afraid that people would perceive him as a homo would not meet me accompanied by bodyguards."

Gratiano de Veronese searched the two men and found some kind of religious icon in their pockets, a cross on a sun. The Italian smiled and said to the unconscious boy:

"The Order of the Holy Resurrection. That means hunters."

He jumped through the window with the child in his arms. When he reached the hotel's courtyard, Gratiano used his tremendous agility to dodge several wooden projectiles shot by two other men.

"Release the boy, demon."

"Make me!"

The Lasombra Methuselah then left Joseph on a bench and proceeded to turn his body into a black mist. One of the hunters said:

"In the Name of The One Whose Resurrection Cleansed Our Sins, be gone!"

A bright light emerged from the crucifix the hunter held which seemed to dissipate the mist. Before the hunters could retrieve the child, Gratiano emerged from behind them and beheaded one of them. He then caught the other and said to him:

"Where did the Order get you from? A temp agency? You suck!"

He then stabbed the hunter in the heart, killing him immediately.

"Well, they clearly were expecting heavy action. Just… they weren't expecting me."

Gratiano took the boy and walked towards his car.

 **Paris, France, several days later**

 **"** It… it is wrong. What I have done. I…"

"Oh, please! It's not like you didn't like it. Admit it, you never felt anything like this before. And don't dare deny it. Because you know, been there, done that."

"I won't deny it, Gratiano. It was exhilarating. But wrong."

"Some might argue it was wrong, yes, but not me."

"I drank from that child like some kind of inveterate diablerist. Like I was one of your Sabbat fellows."

"First of all, that was no child. That was a monster wearing a child's skin. Secondly, that was a bit of discrimination, you know? Diablerie is not just a Sabbat thing."

Beckett's head was pounding. It was a strange sensation. He felt horrible yet on the other hand, he had so much power, far more than he ever had before. The Noddist could now use his blood's powers in many new ways, ways that were just a dream before, when he was of the seventh generation. Now, he felt he is almost as strong as Gratiano, though there was still differences between their abilities. However, the greatest concern for Beckett was the effect the Amaranth had on his mind. It took hundreds of years for Saulot to gain control over Tremere and the Dragon was a rational being. Nicolaus, on the other hand, is anything but rational. The Lasombra Methuselah continued:

"You do know that Tesus will hunt you now, do you?"

"I… suspect he will."

"Do you know anything about him?"

"No, but I believe you will tell me now."

"Indeed. Tesus was the high priest of a strange cult in the Middle East five thousand years ago. He claimed to have had visions about the future. Our colleague, Malkav, being the great collector of prophets he is, Embraced him. Since then, Tesus sired three childer: one named Asios the Scribe, who was his lover and who was killed by your clan's Antediluvian, another named Paulos of Cyrene who met his Final Death at the hands of the Spanish Inquisition and, of course, Nicolaus, the Child of Dread or the Little Madman which… you know how he met his end."

"You seem to know a great deal about this man."

"He is the Archbishop of Santiago de Chile, so yes, I know him well. I also know he hates Gangrel vampires with a passion."

"Tesus is still active?"

"Not as much as me, but for you? He will scour the Earth to find you."

"Does he know his last childe is dead?"

"Yes. He has a bond with his childer and despite their shortcomings, he cared a lot about them. Tesus was the one who smuggled Nicolaus to Argentina from Mexico after he did that terrible thing with that woman. He knew his childe was a monster but he had his blood. I assume Malkav told you about how Nicolaus was Embraced."

"Yes."

"Then you must know more about your… guest. You see, it was your first diablerie so you don't have the practical experience with this most exalted phenomenon. When you take inside you the soul of a being as powerful as a fifth generation Cainite, you run the risk of being… basically hijacked by him. Just like Saulot took Tremere's body. And that was… how to put it… third gen on third gen action. A fifth gen could easily take control of a seventh gen if the diablerist is mentally unprepared."

"I suspected that. When I slept during the day, I felt him raving inside my head, his pure hatred wanting to consume me."

"Well, I don't think the monster's mind was developed enough to understand hatred. That is pure instinct, not hatred. And these are the most dangerous beings, those mindless assholes. You can't reason with them and they can't understand the fact that if you die, they die too, forever. You need to always fight your Passenger."

"My… what?"

"In the Sabbat, we call them Passengers. Those whose bodies we consume yet whose souls remain inside us. Some of them accept their fate and slowly fade away but others are thoroughly destructive, as I suspect yours is. You chose one hell of a creature to diablerize, Beckett."

"I didn't choose. It happened. I had to defend myself."

"Yes, yes, but now there is no turning back."

Beckett felt strange. He had no love for the Sabbat and he didn't knew Gratiano too well but now, he felt some sort of a kinship with the Methuselah. He diablerized his own sire and wasn't consumed by the Antediluvian, of course he knew everything about it.

"Gratiano, what did you do in the States?"

"Killed some southern assholes, a senator asshole and retrieved Bini Alman."

"You are too overt with this crap."

"That's the point."

"You will draw attention towards our kind. But then again, that's what you Sabbat fellows do."

"Again, you discriminate. You see, they already know about us. Only they keep it secret."

"What do you mean?"

"The US senator I killed knew about our kind. He was part of some organization that seeks to serve vampires and in exchange, we turn them at some point. And he had no connection to that awfully group in the South… maybe he had, they both hated gays and the little kid is a racist at age seven but… Anyway, after I killed him, the hunters from the Order of the Holy Resurrection attacked me. Four guys. I killed them too."

"Hunters. Like I said, you are too conspicuous."

"That's the beauty of it. They wanted to take the boy but I stopped them."

"Ah, your new childe…?"

"He is not my childe. I didn't turn him, just… pretend to do it. Drain him but not enough for him to die. I brought him to Saulot. I thought he might use that little brat."

"How?"

"Do you know what Saulot and Malkav harbor?"

"What?"

"A child. Tremere tried some fucked up shit with the kid and Saulot saved him, though he can't wake him up. I thought the senator's kid might be useful if they try to do some life transference ritual, you know? Extending an olive branch to Saulot."

"For what?"

"My time in the American South."

"I see. You want to seek forgiveness for killing all those people."

"First of all, they are not people. They are prey. Secondly, you speak to me like I'm some kind of psychopath when you are a killer too."

"I never perpetrated massacres for pleasure, Gratiano."

"Me neither. It was necessary. To take back those rebellious elements in the Sabbat into the fold, those who consider me a traitor for working with Antediluvians. It wasn't like this before. Murder wasn't the only solution. When the Sabbat was formed, it was formed with ideals in mind and those ideals were holy. Now, we are just a pack of wild dogs…"

 **Paris, France, underneath the hotel**

"My son! My little boy! Please, I want to hear your voice, please!"

"He can't hear you, woman. He's dead."

"But… he moves! He moves…"

"My brother's soul is inside your child's decayed corpse. Whoever inhabited that mummy before died long ago."

"You lie! Soul suckers, always lying. Isn't Saulot a liar, Alexander?"

The mummy spoke, in Greek:

"He is, mother!"

"Oh, my child! He spoke, did you hear? He spoke!"

Petaniqua wept tears of blood. Saulot was disgusted. He said to the mummy:

"You torture her."

Malkav then said, again in Greek:

"Mother, can I ask you something?"

"Anything, my child, my king, the ruler of my world!"

"I want you to travel to Venice."

"I… I can't leave you, not after I found you!"

"You will come back, mother. I want you to capture a Catholic priest and bring him here."

"I'm… I'm sure I can find plenty of Catholic churches in this city! I will bring you ten, no, twenty priests…"

"No, it has to be that one."

"Why, my king?"

"Yes, why that one, Malkav?"

"HE is not MALKAV!"

The mummy then said:

"The priest is Father Luigi Vieri, one of the greatest exorcists of these modern times. He possesses true power, not what those quack ministers try to pass as power."

"I see, you need him for your ritual."

"Mother, I need Father Vieri. Bring him to me, so that we can be together forever."

"Promise?"

"I promise. A Malkavian will give you more details. Leave me, please."

Petaniqua smiled and kissed the golden mask of the mummy, then left the basement. Saulot said:

"You are cruel."

"She's an infernalist whore. She deserves all of this and more."

"She truly loved her child."

"The black widow protects its brood, that doesn't mean it should not be killed on sight. Now, to more pressing concerns. Our plant at the Fashion Week is doing well. Maybe too well. My spies say that there are some Cainite elements that want to give her the Embrace while others already suspect she is one of us. The best thing, however, is that she already made contact with the Prince. They will have a private dinner tomorrow evening."

"I wonder what the menu will be. I think he suspects she is a Cainite. When that girl of ours will show she is unable to eat food and drink normal beverages, he will have confirmation. Our plan will fail."

"We'll have to wait and see. Do not worry, brother, she can be very persuasive."

"I hope so. Now, what are we going to do with _him_?"

He pointed towards a sleeping Joseph who was tugged underneath a blanket in the northern side of the basement.

"Gratiano's gift. We shall use him but not now."

"Malkav, I hope you will not be thinking of sacrificing this child for Johann."

"Of course not. I have different plans with this one."

"What about the terrorist?"

"He told us everything we needed to know. The Assamites were hiding somewhere in New England but after Gratiano's war in the South, they fled to Northern Africa, out of the fear the Sabbat will hunt them down too. We managed to convince their leaders that we will protect them. They agreed to join under one condition…"

"They want us to kill ur-Shulgi."

"We don't know for sure what kind of powers he possesses now. He claims to do the will of Haqim but we know better. Even if we destroy those who remain by his side, he is more than a match for any of us. If Petaniqua delivers the priest, we shall use him to cleanse ur-Shulgi of any demonic influences. Then, when he is weak, we kill him."

"The Tremere are also moving. They attacked several known hideouts of those of my blood. Luckily, they didn't find them. As long as they are under the protection of the Giovanni, I don't have to worry about them."

Malkav didn't answer. Saulot understood his brother was now having one of his fits. He decided to leave him alone but before he left, Malkav started to scream:

"HE'S HERE! HE'S HERE!"

"Who, ur-Shulgi?"

"THE SNAKE!"

Saulot opened his third eye and looked in every direction with it. He saw nothing. The Antediluvian said to his brother:

"What snake? No one is here but us."

Joseph then got on his feet and started to laugh. He opened his eyes and Saulot noticed they were green, snake-like eyes."

"It seems destiny brought me here, my brothers."

Malkav started to shake while Saulot was surprised:

"It can't be… I thought you were in torpor."

"How can anyone sleep while so many interesting things happen in this world?"

"What are you doing here?"

"Where else to be?"

"Since when you are inside that body?"

"A few months. The mortal fool who sired this whelp believed everything those Dominated doctors told him: rare cancer, inoperable tumors. Luckily for me, that Gratiano didn't Embrace this vessel. It would have forced me out. Fortunately, his hubris allowed me to be here with you. Do you not rejoice seeing me after so many thousands of years?"

"You've gone down a very dark path, Set. The corruption your people spread, the… vices, the misery. All of this because of what?"

"You lack vision, brother. You always did. You are content with being a Cainite. While I am a divinity! My people worship me! I am not just their Antediluvian, I am their creator, I am their Messiah and I am their god! I am the only light they have in this sea of darkness they were sentenced to exist."

"The sea of darkness you condemned them to. You gave them your blood."

"I gave them a blessing, brother. If it wasn't for me, they would have been Embraced by someone like Troile or Tzimisce or even worse, Malkav, who would have used them as living batteries to fulfil his nefarious plans. Or do you expect me not to know how you escaped your diablerist, brother? If it wasn't for the Malkavians' Dementation that weakened Tremere's mind, you still would have been trapped inside that worm."

"Are we enemies, Set?"

"I don't know yet. Are we?"

"I don't have anything against your people, brother. Though I suspect you don't have anything against mine either. You want something from me, Set. Tell me what you want."

"Aren't you the quick thinker? For centuries, my descendants wage a never ending war against a foreign invader who set his haven in my ancestral home of Egypt. At first, this creature was accepted by my people as one of their own. They even taught him Serpentis. But now, he uses this power to try and swindle our home from us. That would not stand. That bastard is as faithless to me and mine just like he was a faithless son to Ashur."

"You want us to kill Lazarus?"

"I want him out of Egypt. That Lasombra of yours was in contact with him recently. He even got the True Vessel from him."

"Lazarus might prove to be a powerful ally. I will not try to kill him but to recruit him."

"As long as he doesn't fill my sands with his stench anymore, do what you want."

Set then turned his eyes towards the shaking Malkav:

"Do you really think your priest can destroy the demons ur-Shulgi is in league with?"

"Get out of here! GET OUT OF HERE!"

"Easy there, brother. Your plan will fail. Ur-Shulgi is not stupid to be defeated by a mortal priest's ritual. However, if the three of us work together…"

"GET OUT!"

Saulot then said:

"How are you so… neighborly? You try to corrupt everything that exists in this world and beyond, yet now you want to help us?"

"If you help me get rid of Lazarus, I will help you get rid of ur-Shulgi. How about that?"

"If Lazarus joins us, will you be able to work alongside him?"

"I don't have any problems with him, as long as he is OUTSIDE Egypt."

Malkav then calmed down and said:

"What are you hiding there, snake, that you are so afraid Ashur's childe will find?"

Set grunted, which seemed almost as a snake's hissing:

"Everyone in this world have secrets, brother. I hope you do not expect I will reveal mine."

Saulot said:

"Your secrets are your own, Set. I know this is a trap but I would be a liar if I didn't admit that it makes me happy to see you, even if you are in this form."

"And I am happy to see you, too. And to prove how happy I am, I have a gift for you."

"What gift?"

"I know the location of Haqim's torpid body."


	13. Crying For Justice

**Somewhere underneath Tehran, Iran**

Saulot and his Antediluvian brother Set travelled the sewers, looking for a secret door that the Serpent knew it hid Haqim. Until that moment, nothing out of the ordinary happened but the Salubri could feel the immense power of his fellow Antediluvian that was sleeping in that place. Set, who possessed the child's body, was now dressed in Ancient Egyptian pharaoh garb, clothes that he stole from a museum in Paris. He said to his brother:

"After we find Haqim, what do we do?"

"We help him subdue ur-Shulgi."

"If he wants ur-Shulgi subdued."

"I know Haqim. He wouldn't allow his childe to destroy their clan. The Assamite always stood for honor and justice."

"Don't be naïve. Haqim stands for himself and himself only. His clan is nothing more that the tool he uses to fulfil his goals, just like any other Antediluvian."

"I do not wish for that. And neither do you, Set. You care about your people."

"I don't care about them and I will not do so until they reach the level of enlightenment desired by me."

"You talk about enlightenment, brother? You are a corrupter, nothing more."

"True, yet corruption is the only way to achieve salvation. You see, without corruption, what use has redemption? Forgiveness? Enlightenment? One must know the darkness so that he could love the light."

"In Paris, one of your descendants poses as a nurse at a hospital. She infects newborn children with strange diseases so that they die in the arms of their mothers. Is that enlightenment?"

"She does what she needs, what she craves. She is surrounded by darkness now but soon, she will see the light."

"Not anymore. I killed her."

Set didn't even bat an eye.

"Aren't you the bloody saint?!"

"I couldn't let her continue. When I hunted her, I caught her trying to infect a baby with polio."

"Polio? Stupid bitch. I always told them to never kill in weird ways. Draws too much attention. Polio in Paris… You did well killing that cunt, brother."

"I did well, yes, but not because of the reasons you think about."

"Whatever. Now, about your end of the deal…"

"Gratiano is in Egypt. He will try to recruit Lazarus."

"If he can't, he must kill him."

"Yes, I told him what he must do."

 **Venice, Italy**

Petaniqua was sitting on the steps of the great church, covered with rags. In her right hand, she held an iron cup where people would throw coins or banknotes. It was humiliating for her, but if she wanted to be together with her son again, she would do anything. A nun approached the ancient Malkavian and said:

"Bambina?"

Petaniqua frowned and said:

"I… I don't speak Italian."

The nun smiled and entered the church. A few minutes later, a priest with white hair and short beard appeared before Petaniqua and said:

"Sister Angela told me that you don't know Italian. Do not worry. I know English. I was about to close for the night but… come in."

Petaniqua nodded and entered the church. He raised her eyes towards the altar and scoffed at the statue of Jesus on the cross. The priest said:

"It seems you have suffered much, my daughter. What is your name?"

"It's… Olympias."

"Nice to meet you, Olympias. I am Luigi. Luigi Vieri."

Of course, the former Queen of Macedonia knew who the priest was. Vieri continued:

"I was like that once, you know? Without hope. Long ago, when I was just a boy."

"Why?"

"You wouldn't believe it if I told you."

"Tell me, pr… father."

"You see, the source of all evil is the devil. All that is vile in this world comes from him. Oh, look at me rambling. You must be starved. I have bread, meat and fresh water. I will bring you something to eat."

"No… I'm… not hungry."

"Really? You look awful, Olympias. You look hungry and… parched. Surely you don't…"

"NO! I…"

"It's alright. If you are not hungry you are not hungry. I was telling you about me. When I was a boy, we didn't have much. My father worked in the mines up north while my mother was the village's baker. We were poor but we were happy. One night, however, a man knocked at our door. Father wasn't home. I told mother not to open the door but… she did. A man attacked her, killing her with his bare hands. Then, he… drank her blood. I ran away and saw my father… he was dead on the alley, killed by the same monster that took my mother away from me. That being was… so fast. He caught me but he was stopped by a man who shot him. That man was a hunter. He told me about the things that exist in the dark. About the demon that killed my parents. A vampire. He raised me and taught me how to stop those monsters."

"V…vampire?"

"Yes, vampire. Those beings are nothing more than people possessed by the devil. The blood thirst is nothing more than the devil's desire for pain and suffering. Oh, I think I've scared you enough for a night. Come on, Olympias. I will let you sleep in the church this night. I have a room upstairs."

"Fine…"

Petaniqua followed the priest to a room. It was decorated pretty sparsely with just a wooden bed, a crucifix on the wall and a table with a chair. Suddenly, the Malkavian jumped on the ceiling, sticking to it like a spider to a wall. The priest said:

"Vampire. I knew it."

Vieri then removed the carpet and Petaniqua noticed strange letters and drawings on the floor.

"This is the _Hymn of Saint Joao of Lisbon_. It can repel those of your kind. I knew you were one of them ever since Sister Angela told me about you."

"And I knew that fucking nun was a Cainite the moment she spoke to me? What now? Cainites are working with hunters?"

The old nun entered the room and said:

"I am not a Cainite. Not anymore. I am now a child of God. I exist only to serve Him."

Petaniqua then laughed:

"Aha ha ha ha! You became the priest's bitch! What now, father? Tired of nailing young boys? Now you want to fuck hags with fangs?"

"Your words are meaningless, demon. You are trapped now and you can't escape."

Petaniqua realized the ceiling was enchanted too. She was trapped there. Angela said:

"Father, this woman is one of the Red List, the most hunted vampires in the world. She is very old and dangerous. We must be careful."

"We will be, my daughter."

The priest left, leaving Angela with Petaniqua. The Malkavian said:

"A childe of Caine serving mortals. You are a traitor to your kind, you fucking hag!"

"I am a child of God. I was a wayward soul, like you. But I found peace in the light of Jesus Christ. How sad must you be, Petaniqua, to not be able to feel our Lord's love."

"I need no man's love!"

"He is not just a man. He is God."

"God… You mean the god Jews invented two thousand years ago? When I was mortal, there were other gods. Your carpenter was nonexistent then, pathetic whore!"

"He came when He was supposed to come and His light shattered the unholy idols of the old world."

"If your god is so powerful, then why doesn't he smite us all? Me, you, every other Cainite in this world?"

"Because He is love. He doesn't smite, not even us the damned. He loves us, Petaniqua. When that man bit me and turned me into a demon, my heart became as empty as his promises of power and peace. But Jesus…He forgave me! He showed me that even one as unclean as me can serve Him and partake in His blessings! And, after tonight, you will partake, too."

"If you think your pep talk can turn me Christian, you are a stupid bitch."

"After the exorcism purges you of all demons, your soul will be clean again… or you will die."

Angela then used Celerity and suddenly, Petaniqua found herself tied to a cross inside the church. Luigi Vieri said:

"Leave us, Angela."

The nun bowed and left for a room above. The Malkavian woman said:

"You want us to be alone while you fuck me bloody?"

"No, I will cleanse your soul. I will expunge the demons within you and you will be saved."

"Demons? You are madder than me, priest! Inside me there is nothing more than the Beast!"

"So, you are aware of the devil inside you."

"Aha ha ha ha! There is no devil inside me! There is only the Beast! And now, you are so close of rousing it!"

"This Beast is nothing more than a demon, my daughter. Angela told me about your… kind of vampire. Malkavians you call yourselves? Mad vampires. Unfortunately, the hunter who raised me wasn't that versed in the intricacies of vampiric society but if you are as mad as Angela claims you are, then some protective measures must be taken."

The priest then approached a column and pressed a button. The stained glass windows then opened, letting the moonlight inside the church.

"If the exorcism doesn't work, in the morning the sun will end your torment."

"Do your worst!"

Luigi Vieri then started to chant in Latin but Petaniqua wasn't reacting at all. She seemed lost in thought, murmuring words of her own. The priest then brought a hot iron and with it, he touched Petaniqua's skin. The Malkavian cried in pain.

"Demons hate fire and iron. Soon, you will be free of them! Satan, leave this woman!"

Petaniqua then laughed, saying:

"Take them out if you want them out! Come here and fuck me! Fill me with your cleanliness so that the demons can go out!"

The priest continued his chants while Petaniqua continued to laugh and shout obscenities at him. For hours, this went on over and over again. Luigi said:

"In a few minutes, the holy sun will rise and turn you to ashes."

As it got more luminous, Petaniqua could noticed the paintings on the church's walls, one of them featuring her own son, Alexander. The priest then said:

"You're looking at that painting, right? See that? Alexander the Great, the mightiest king of the ancient world, bowing before the True King, Jesus Christ."

This angered Petaniqua to no end. She then tried to break her chains but they were too strong. A few minutes later, the sun's light invaded the church. Petaniqua cried out in pain.

"Demons, get out of her!"

Suddenly, the Malkavian's cry turned from a scream into laughter. For the first time, Luigi Vieri was frightened: the sun did nothing to her. The fifth generation vampire then said:

"Your god failed you, priest! I am blessed by the sun, not cursed by it!"

Petaniqua then easily broke off her chains and descended the cross. The priest was shaking.

"See how easily your faith crumbles? Just like these chains…"

Petaniqua then touched the priest's forehead and he passed out. The angry ancient vampire then went to the rooms where she found Angela sleeping in a coffin. The Malkavian then took a wooden crucifix and stabbed Angela in the heart with it. She then said:

"I should have stuck this in your cunt!"

Petaniqua then carried the coffin under the sun's light, incinerating Angela and killing her immediately. The mad queen then said:

"Alexander, beloved son, my king, I have him! I have the priest!"

 _"I knew I could count on you, mother. Someone will wait for you at the Grand Canal."_

"I am coming home, beloved son!"

Petaniqua then climbed on the church's wall and started to cry tears of blood at the feet of Alexander's painting. She then said:

"No one will make you bow before them again, my son!"

 **Somewhere near the Great Pyramid, Egypt, that evening**

Gratiano beheaded one dead man while using the shadows to strangle another. The rotten carcasses then fell down at the Lasombra's feet while the Antediluvian was cleaning the guts staining his suit. Another horde of zombies attacked the Sabbat leader. Gratiano then started to tear through them, cutting them to shreds using a combination of his swordsmanship, gunplay and Celerity. The Methuselah then said:

"Your dead can't do shit to me, Lazarus. Come out, we need to talk!"

Gratiano's demand was met with another horde of zombies. He sighed and proceeded to engage them, killing them almost immediately. The Italian noticed he was out of bullets so he holstered his gun and said:

"I came here in peace, Lazarus!"

The dead stopped and a hooded figure emerged from the sands. That figure then raised its bony hands and another horde of zombies, even greater than the ones before, attacked Gratiano. The Italian then used his Celerity to sit atop the Great Pyramid. The panorama was breathtaking but Gratiano had no time to admire it. He then turned into a shadow and returned on the ground and tried to stab the hooded man but, after he did it, it turned out that the hooded figure was nothing more than another dead. Behind Gratiano, another dark presence emerged but the Italian used his immensely powerful Presence to make that person kneel in awe. Gratiano approached him and removed his hood. It was not Lazarus but a dark haired woman with green eyes.

"Angelique."

The woman tried to bite Gratiano's neck but the more powerful Methuselah immobilized her with his shadows. He then said:

"So you emerged too."

"Yes, I did. What do you want from my sire, Lasombra?"

"I want to talk to him, just that. I assume those stinking corpses are your doing?"

"They are just lonely travelers, lost in the sands of Egypt. Perfect ammunition for my attacks."

Another cloaked figure appeared from behind Gratiano. A gruff voice, speaking in an exotic accent said:

"Release her and we'll talk."

Gratiano agreed and released Angelique.

"Leave, my childe."

Angelique nodded and left. Lazarus removed his hood, revealing his bald, emaciated face and ruby-like red eyes.

"Have I not given you enough, Gratiano?"

"Yet more is required of you, Lazarus. Set has returned to this world and wishes you to leave Egypt."

"I don't care what Sutekh wants."

"Yet, I do care about what he want. You see, Set is now our ally against ur-Shulgi. Our end of the deal is that we… how can I put it… remove you from Egypt. One way or another."

"Is that so? Why don't you try, Gratiano?"

"Well, I'm trying right now. I didn't came here to fight you, Lazarus. I am here to propose you an alliance."

"An alliance you say?"

"Yes. If you and your childe leave Egypt and join us, we will destroy the Giovanni together. Isn't that your endgame, Faithless Son?"

Lazarus spat:

"Do not call me like that, you who diablerized your own sire! I am no faithless son. I am the most faithful son Lord Cappadocious had! I knew what he was trying to do and I refused to be part of that machination. Because it was madness! Because it destroyed him!"

"And now, I'm offering you a chance of revenge. A quicker revenge than the one you try to put together. Isn't that right, _Capuchin_?"

Lazarus frowned:

"You are as mad as Malkav."

"True. Hey, I'll sweeten the pot, if you wish. Join us and you will get what you always wanted, besides getting revenge on the Giovanni."

"And what did I always wanted?"

"This."

Suddenly, a large, black vortex of energy opened behind Gratiano. From there, endless voices calling to Lazarus. The fourth generation Cappadocian said, shocked:

"Are they… how…?"

"Yes, they are. Your lost brethren, or at least those whom your sire trapped underneath your former haven. An entire army of dead raisers. How about that for sweetening the pot?"

"How did they escape?"

"Saulot broke them out. But they were too many and too angry to be left free so I stored them in the Abyss."

"Damn you, Gratiano. My brothers and sisters, prisoners again!"

"Oh, no no! They are simply… dormant, until they are needed. How would you like that, Lazarus? Clan Cappadocian restored again, with you, the… Faithful Son at its helm?"

Lazarus nodded.

 **Somewhere underneath Tehran, Iran**

"Set, I'm sensing him. He is buried close."

"Like I said. Deep beneath this city, lies the shrine of Haqim."

"Let's find it."

After a while, the two Antediluvians found out a highly engraved door, lying between two statues, one of a soldier and one of a scholar. Above the door, an engraving of a hunter confirmed to Saulot and Set that this was the haven of Haqim. Saulot then said:

"Shall we?"

Set nodded.

Inside the shrine, thousands upon thousands of scrolls and musty tomes surrounded a large bed and on that bed, lied a copper-skinned man with short hair and a short beard. He was bare-chested and in his hands, a mighty bow was lying. Saulot then said:

"Brother Haqim, awaken."

Haqim was silent. Set then said:

"Awaken, Haqim."

Haqim opened his eyes but he didn't say anything. Saulot said:

"Once, ages ago, after the Deluge, I insisted you become the New City's law keeper. Because you are just. You are a paragon of justice. Please, talk to me."

Again, silence. Saulot continued:

"Your childe, ur-Shulgi, arose. He has sown chaos in your clan, killing your other childe, Jamal. He claims to do all that in your name. You must stop him, Haqim. You and you alone have that power."

"He can't hear you, Lord Saulot."

Saulot and Set turned around and saw a monstrous creature, resembling a burned man approaching them.

"Ur-Shulgi."


	14. The Night When the Stones Spoke

**Haqim's haven, underneath Tehran, Iran**

"Lord Saulot, Lord Sutekh."

"Damn, you're ugly."

Saulot wasn't as vocal as his brother. He studied the man in front of him: he wasn't even sure that was a man. Ur-Shulgi was very young when he was Embraced, ten years old if the legends of Clan Assamite are to be believed, but the creature in front of the Salubri Antediluvian was looking like a zombie who died in a fire. His eyes were nonexistent, lost thousands of years ago, but that didn't seem to impede Haqim's childe to see perfectly. Set said:

"You are more corrupted than even me. I respect that. However, you stand in our way."

"Please, I didn't come here to fight."

"Yeah, sure. And I'm a flower in the sun."

Set roused his dark powers so much that the corrupted energies within him became visible. Saulot saw his brother enveloped in a pale green light so potent that he could taste the venom and hatred inside the Antediluvian. Saulot has seen his brother like that in the past and whole armies cowered before his might yet ur-Shulgi was unmoved. The Salubri finally spoke and said:

"Calm down, Set. Tell me, ur-Shulgi, what do you want?"

"To talk. You see, you came here seeking my Father. However, he is indisposed. Whatever business you have with him, you can talk with me."

Set laughed, his laughter sounding more like an asp's hiss:

"Well, we wanted to kill you. Can you help us kill you?"

Ur-Shulgi replied:

"I am afraid I can't help you with that. I have to say, I didn't meet many of the third generation since I was made. You are incredible. You radiate of power, so much that the two of you could enslave this world with only a snap of your fingers. But, Lord Saulot, you do not want that."

"I don't."

"I heard the heretics have joined your cause. I have to ask you to renounce their services and return them to me. In return, I will help you destroy the Tremere, as this is your war's purpose."

"But at what cost? I can sense you, ur-Shulgi. You consorted with demons, your blood is tainted with their venom. You are an enemy."

"I am sorry you think this way. Then, I'm afraid it will be war between us. Yet I do not want loyal Assamites to die in futile battles against three Antediluvians and a Methuselah as powerful as Gratiano the Lasombra. I want to battle you in a duel, like in the old times."

"A duel?"

"Yes. If you accept, in three days' time, we shall meet on the island of Fjordborg in Norway. There, we will not be disturbed, for no living creature can withstand the cold."

"Who do you want to fight?"

"All three of you, of course."

Set laughed:

"You have a death wish, clearly."

"You will find out I am more than a match for each of you, Lord Sutekh."

Ur-Shulgi disappeared, as well as Haqim's body. Saulot said to his brother:

"His arrogance knows no bounds, but I believe him. He can take on three of us. Have you sensed his blood?"

"Yes, I did. I have to ditch this child. I'll meet you on that island."

"Where are you going now?"

"Egypt. I need my body."

"I see."

 **Paris, France, the next day**

"I did everything you asked, Alexander! Yet you scorn me! Why? Why have I done wrong?"

"Everything."

"Why? My son, I know what is wrong with you! You hate me because I let you die but it wasn't my fault! Cybele… She didn't let me…"

Petaniqua started to cry, blood flowing on her cheeks. Saulot was disgusted:

"Malkav, stop tormenting her."

"HE IS NOT MALKAV!"

Saulot smiled and said:

"Infernalist you may be, Petaniqua, but not even you deserve this torment. Tell me, do you want peace?"

"I want my son!"

Saulot approached Petaniqua and took her hand into his:

"I can't give you your son back. He died too long ago. His body is now decayed and his soul is long gone in the other world. What I can give you is a fair reward for your labors."

"I don't want a reward! I want my son back… you have no idea, Salubri! Neither of you has any idea! You sired childer by killing them and making them yours using your blood but I had Alexander inside me! He grew up inside me, my blood nurtured him and after he was born, my milk! Then, that bitch turned me and I couldn't feed my son anymore! Alexander was part of my body, part of me! He was my baby and they took him away from me…"

She fell down on her knees, weeping. Malkav scoffed:

"You reap what you sow, whore."

Petaniqua said:

"I know you are angry with me, my child. I deserve that, truly. I did a lot of bad things. But all I did, I did for you! To bring you back! Do you remember? After you got hurt at Issus, wasn't me the one who bandaged your wounded leg? When that Persian tried to assassinate you in your camp, wasn't I the one who turned his poison against him. When your son was born, wasn't I who tried desperately to protect him from those who would kill him?"

"Yet you failed!"

"I did, yes. They killed him during the day, I… I couldn't do anything."

Saulot said:

"The past doesn't matter. What matters is the present and the future. Petaniqua, you have to understand that inside your son's body lies another. The words that hurt you so much aren't Alexander's but Malkav's. Your grandsire's. Malkav, Petaniqua could have betrayed us so many times, yet she didn't do. She deserves peace."

"She wants this rotten corpse."

"Then give it to her. You can't fight ur-Shulgi inside that mummy. Even Set left that boy he was into to get his body back."

"I will not give it to her."

"Please, Malkav. Instead of finding a way to use that priest she collected to give us an edge against ur-Shulgi, you act like a vindictive child. I am disappointed in you, brother."

The mummy turned its masked head towards Petaniqua and started to scream:

"MOTHER! PLEASE! HELP ME! HE… HE TORTURES ME!"

"What? Alexander, is that you? Malkav… Malkav, what are you doing to my son?"

"HE… HE… HE DOES THINGS TO MY PRIVATE PARTS!"

Then the mummy started to laugh hysterically while Petaniqua continued to cry. Saulot sighed:

"You are a disgrace, brother. Petaniqua, come with me."

The woman followed Saulot in another room of the basement and the Salubri Antediluvian said to her:

"I am sure you know about the gift I given to your forefather Malkav. I want to bestow the same gift to you. It will not last, it never does. But for at least a couple of nights, you will feel… normal."

"What…?"

"Yes. It is called the Touch of the Saints. A pompous name your clan gave to it. I called it the Peace of the Oasis. Come here, child."

Saulot put his hands on Petaniqua's head and opened his third eye. He was now in another place, a place more familiar to him than the modern world. It was a tent, somewhere in a desert. Saulot could see Petaniqua dressed in one of the most beautiful gowns someone could wear in that period of time. It was purple, the color of royalty and fit for a woman like Olympias, the Queen of Macedonia. She sat on a dais, drinking her vitae from a crystal cup. One of her attendants said in a Greek that was easy to understand for Saulot:

 _"My queen, I have a surprise for you."_

 _"Yes?"_

 _"A slave was brought in today from Babylon. She is as beautiful as the moon and as brilliant as the sun. Do you want her?"_

 _"If she's as beautiful as you say… let her in."_

The attendant bowed and left the tent. A few moments later, a young girl entered. She was truly as beautiful as Petaniqua's servant said. Saulot noticed her eyes, which were as green as the leaves in the spring. Her black hair was flowing like silk and her bare, firm breasts were promising a thousand years of pleasure. The queen immediately took her by the waist and kissed her. After that, she said:

 _"You are so beautiful that my dead heart almost beat again. What is your name, sun ray?"_

 _"Asha."_

 _"Asha… are you from Babylon?"_

 _"No… I was captured by the king's armies and was brought to Babylon from my village. I was supposed to mate with the king but after he took ill, Nicator sent me here."_

Petaniqua froze, her eyes moving in every direction in her body. The queen then grabbed the slave and said:

 _"WHAT DID YOU SAY? WHAT HAPPENED WITH MY SON? TELL ME! TELL ME!"_

 _"My queen, you're hurting me…"_

The queen's vampiric strength almost broke the slender waist of Asha. The Malkavian then let her go and said:

 _"TELL ME!"_

 _"I don't really know what happened. The other slaves said that the king drank too much wine and then, he had a fever. He was unwell when I was sent away."_

Petaniqua was incensed. She grabbed another attendant, this time by the neck, breaking it easily and killing her immediately. The desperate Malkavian screamed:

 _"WHY DID NO ONE TELL ME?"_

 _"I told them not to."_

Another woman entered the tent. This time, her beauty was so much that made even Asha ugly. Long curly hair, full lips and pale skin that served only to enhance her beauty. She wore no clothes except for a piece of red fabric around her waist. Petaniqua was furious:

 _"Mistress! My son! Please, I need to get to him!"_

 _"No."_

 _"No? He will die… Everything he built… they will take it away from us! Nicator, Ptolemy… all of them are vultures!"_

 _"Land matters not. The prophecy is more important than land."_

 _"What…"_

 _"Your son will die in nine days. As it was foretold, as it should be."_

 _"Cybele…"_

Cybele slapped Petaniqua who fell down and then proceeded to kill everyone in the room except her childe and Asha.

 _"This one is pretty. I will make sure she will be put to good use. Listen, I gave you the Blood and made you what you are now because you need to play your part in the prophecy, nothing more, nothing less. And you will not give Alexander your Blood because that will upset the prophecy! Do you understand?"_

Petaniqua tried to attack her sire but Cybele was far more powerful and managed to subdue her assailant with ease. The Methuselah said:

 _"I will let this slide as the grief of a childless mother. I used a Discipline to trap you here until the king passes away. Each night, you will get slaves to feed from. If you refuse, I will force-feed you."_

 _"Please, mistress, let me go! My son! I will do anything, please!"_

 _"No!"_

Cybele left and Petaniqua tried to leave the tent but a force pushed her back. She then tried to rip the tent itself but it repaired itself immediately. The queen then ripped her gown of, clawing at her face and chest but she quickly regenerated. Saulot closed his eyes and returned. He held Petaniqua's face in his hands and said to her:

"For a few nights, you will forget that your son is dead. You managed to save him, Petaniqua, and he now rules over the world with you and your grandson at his side. You are now in Persepolis and countless voices sing hymns to the glory of Alexander the Great. Sleep well and dream even better, my dear."

Saulot carried Petaniqua to a bed. For the first time in two thousand years, she was at peace. The Salubri returned to Malkav and said:

"You are a cruel bastard, brother. She suffered so much. No wonder she turned to demon worshipping."

Malkav mumbled. Saulot then said:

"Leave this mummy and get a body in working condition. We must go."

 **Island of Fjordborg, somewhere in northern Norway, two days later**

Malkav was now inside a muscular man's body, dressed in armor looking like a Roman centurion's. Set got his body back, the tall, proud, tanned body that the Antediluvian used to entice lesser beings into corruption. He was dressed in the ancient outfit that Saulot knew so well. Millennia ago, the three of them were closer than even brothers until Set left, hating his position as a vampire, wanting to be a god. Ur-Shulgi was already there, the same burned man as before with an iron spear in his right arm. Even though on the island were almost minus forty degrees Celsius, not one of them were feeling the cold. Ur-Shulgi said:

"I am honored to fight you. I want to make that clear."

Malkav then said:

"If we do this, we make rules. No demon magic or things like that."

"I don't know what you are talking about, Lord Malkav."

Set said:

"Sure, sure. Just, don't pull that crap with us."

Saulot then said:

"I am sad that we have to resort to violence, but if it can't be helped…"

Ur-Shulgi nodded and before anyone could realize, Malkav was already down, struck by the Assamite's immense speed. The mad Antediluvian then roared, taking out his sword and trying to strike ur-Shulgi while Set used his Typhonic Maw application of Serpentis to turn his mouth into a serpent one. He then bit ur-Shulgi who for the first time since the assault began, backed down for a bit. Set then used his Shadow of Apep and turned into a giant, black snake. He then said:

"You are nothing compared to us, whelp!"

Ur-Shulgi realized the danger and used Celerity to escape. The giant snake followed while Saulot picked up Malkav and ran towards them. The entire forest was devastated by Set. Ur-Shulgi then expelled a green fire from his mouth, stopping the serpent in its path. The Assamite then murmured something and made the snake sweat blood, reverting Set to his mammal form. The Antediluvian said:

"Heh, you denied me access to my vitae. But how about this…"

The Egyptian struck the ground with his fist, splitting it and creating a large chasm. Above the battlefield, black clouds started to gather. Ur-Shulgi then approached Set and struck him with his forearm, sending him into a tree. Set replied by punching the Assamite and then using a wooden branch to stab him in the stomach but he realized that he didn't make even a dent. The charred skin of the Assamite Methuselah was too strong. Ur-Shulgi then punched Set again and the Egyptian deity felt an incredible weakness in him. He then said

"What the… you…"

"I temporarily increased your generation, Lord Sutekh. You are now weaker than even my grandchilder. Yield and I might not kill you."

Set laughed:

"You did that, whelp, but you are spent. There are other two you need to face yet you blew your entire load with me? Weak!"

Another punch sent Set flying. For the first time in millennia, Set was weakened. Saulot then appeared, third eye open, bathing ur-Shulgi with light. The ruined skin of the Assamite started to blister even more but the Methuselah's resistance was incredible. He tried to stab Saulot with the iron spear but Malkav punched it and broke it in half. The sky continued to darken and the first lightning bolts appeared and several rain drops hit the cheeks of the fighting Cainites. Ur-Shulgi said:

"This island hasn't seen rain in eons. And now, the skies weep for you."

The Assamite then dropped on his knees and expelled several streams of vile, black ichor. Malkav and Saulot dodged them but the final one hit Malkav's armor. Before it could touch his skin, the Antediluvian discarded his armor. Ur-Shulgi then used the blade of the broken spear to cut his wrist and then he bled in a nearby stream, turning the entire water into blood. The Assamite said:

"This is true power!"

The blood coalesced into a gigantic human which held a bow.

"This is something you haven't seen, not even ones with existences long as yours. This is the Avatar of Haqim and it will cleanse the world of impurity and heresy!"

Saulot illuminated the blood human with his third eye and managed to burn one of its legs but before it could fall down, the leg reconstructed using the remaining blood in the stream. Ur-Shulgi then pointed at Malkav and the behemoth shot a bloody arrow which struck him dead in the chest.

"Malkav!"

Suddenly, ur-Shulgi started to scream, while clawing at his face:

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"

The Salubri realized Malkav invaded ur-Shulgi. He then focused his third eye on the Assamite, trying to sap the child of Haqim's willpower so that Malkav can take complete control. However, ur-Shulgi jumped on the monster's shoulder and bit the creature's neck, absorbing the blood and dissipating the behemoth. Now, ur-Shulgi's body was bright red in color, like a demon. Saulot said:

"You swore not to use…"

"I lied."

Before ur-Shulgi could attack Saulot, a powerful lightning bolt struck him in the head, almost splitting it in half. Saulot tried to find out where that lightning came from. He then saw the source: a vampire who resembled more with a beast than a man came near the Antediluvian. He had a long, white beard and even longer hair and his right eye was gouged out. The man wore just a leather loincloth and had claws so long that seemed almost as long as Malkav's short sword. Gabriel Glover of the Order of Cascadia appeared behind Saulot and said:

"Mission completed, Ancient One. This is Odin, the All-High, childe of Ennoia."

The bestial Gangrel attacked ur-Shulgi and managed to physically dominate him for a while. The Assamite backed down and tried to retreat but another lightning bolt sent him over the stream and into the ocean. Odin said:

"This wretched being plans something. Brace for impact!"

A large red tsunami struck the island. The vampires used all Celerity and took refuge in the chasm created by Set earlier. The island was completely devastated. Gabriel Glover said to Saulot:

"My lord, this is… madness. I am a sixth generation vampire but I couldn't dream of doing things like that…"

Ur-Shulgi appeared and before anyone could react, he immediately beheaded Gabriel Glover with Malkav's sword, ending the vampire in an instant. Odin the All-High started to exchange blows with the Assamite while Saulot assisted him with rays of light from his third eye. The All-High left the chasm, followed by Saulot. The island was completely flooded and several trees were burning but that strange fire couldn't be extinguished by the rain and the ocean water. The Assamite vampire then made Odin himself sweat blood, blocking the Methuselah's access to his vitae.

"Without blood, you are nothing more than a beat down puppy. Why do you hold back, Saulot? Aren't you the legendary Dragon, the Warlord? Fight me seriously or die!"

Saulot knew that while in Tremere's body, the access he had to his powers was limited. He can survive this fight, but he would be severely weakened. He can't tolerate weakness, not now. Ur-Shulgi was beating Odin, who managed to parry several blows. The only thing that worked against the Assamite was lightning but now, after the blood block, Odin can't use Thaumaturgy's Path of the Levinbolt again. Ur-Shulgi said:

"Since Caine's blood turned men into beasts for the first time, the world changed! We shaped the world! We! Our laws, our justice shaped the world! The Assamites were the judge, jury and executioner of our world. And we shall remain like this until Gehenna!"

Ur-Shulgi continued his assault, pouncing on Odin while dodging the streams of light from Saulot. Suddenly, a black vortex opened and from it, emerged a maddened horde of zombies and behind them, hundreds of cloaked, emaciated figures. The last to emerge from the vortex were two men: one with black hair and black beard, with sharp features and wearing an incredibly expensive suit and the other with an almost skeletal face and bright red eyes. Gratiano de Veronese and Lazarus the Faithless Son, the unlikely tandem of Methuselahs and the army of the dead were now the final line of defense against ur-Shulgi. Gratiano said:

"I will attack from the shadows."

Lazarus then threw his cloak, revealing his thin, gaunt frame, wearing just black leather pants and boots. In his hand, he had a long, wooden staff with a skull as a tip. He then proceeded to strike the skull with a dagger, destroying it. The horde became even wilder, attacking from every angle and striking at the Assamite Methuselah, biting him and trying to immobilize him. However, the dead who touched ur-Shulgi's blood started to attack the other dead. Gratiano emerged from the shadows and landed a powerful blow on ur-Shulgi, severing his left arm with his sword. He then screamed:

"Order your fucking dead to stop biting him, his blood turns them to him."

Lazarus knew that. He decided to enter the fray himself, using his immense Fortitude to increase his resistance to such a degree that every blow that ur-Shulgi landed seemed mere pokes. Gratiano then said:

"Cover me while I open another gate to the Abyss."

Saulot went with Gratiano and protected him. The Sabbat leader then picked the priest, Luigi Vieri, from the Abyss.

"Come on, father, do your work!"

"Monsters, demons! What is this?"

"Come on, we don't have all night. Do the fucking exorcism!"

The priest was frightened, but he managed to take out his holy book. The pages became wet due to the rain but he started chanting in Latin. Lazarus stopped fighting ur-Shulgi and retreated near the priest. Ur-Shulgi started to shake, his blood congealing and squirming. He started to shout and run towards the priest, throwing the sword of Malkav at Luigi Vieri but it was intercepted by Odin who started to engage the Assamite again. Ur-Shulgi was clearly suffering, each word of the priest hurting him worse than any blow that the All-High could dish. Lazarus then said:

"It seems to work but it's not enough."

Gratiano replied:

"How the hell to be enough? This is a guy who pussyfied three Antediluvians."

"Puss… what?"

"Never mind. I'll attack him again. Cover me!"

Gratiano tried to sever ur-Shulgi's other arm but the Assamite dodged. Lazarus then managed to stab ur-Shulgi in the chest with the wooden staff but instead of paralyzing the Assamite, the stick turned into a black snake with horns that immobilized Lazarus. Gratiano cut down the snake's head and freed the Cappadocian.

" _And through Your glory, You who conquered death and humbled the devil, cleanse this Soul!_ "

Gratiano attacked again, this time, before landing a blow, he stopped in front of ur-Shulgi and looked down, in the water beneath his feet: he could… see himself, his faced unchanged by time staring back at him. Gratiano then closed his eyes and stabbed his reflection with his sword, dispelling ur-Shulgi's Dominate-infused illusion. He then dropped his blade and touched the Assamite's feet with his hand. A shadow emerged from beneath and slashed the childe of Haqim's chest, dealing him another wound. Lazarus then touched ur-Shulgi's blood and said:

"This will keep him still for a while. Quickly, cut off his head!"

Gratiano realized that the Rigor Mortis produced by Lazarus was taking effect, a powerful application of the Mortis discipline that all Cappadocians possessed. The Italian grabbed his blade and struck ur-Shulgi's neck but instead of cutting the dead flesh of the vampire, the blade broke in two.

"Fortitude!"

It was easy for a Methuselah such as ur-Shulgi to master powerful Disciplines and use them at the most opportune time.

" _Demon, leave! Demon, go back to hell! Demon, to the lake of fire!_ "

Ur-Shulgi then disengaged from the two Methuselahs he was fighting and jumped over them, running again like a maddened jaguar towards the priest. This time, Saulot's light burned him again, forcing him to try and leave the island but the Salubri said:

"You will not go! Gratiano, throw me your sword!"

"It's broken!"

"It matters not, now!"

Gratiano threw the blade of the sword to Saulot who then used Celerity to reach ur-Shulgi, pinning him to the ground. The Cappadocians then summoned skeletons to force him to remain down. Saulot then said:

"I will purge you of all the demons inside you!"

He opened his third eye and touched ur-Shulgi's face. The Assamite started to scream in pain. Saulot said:

"Argh! This is…"

Saulot was not at the battlefield anymore, but somewhere else, in the desert, near an oasis. A boy was sitting there, bathing in the waters. A voice called to him in an ancient tongue, long forgotten by men but so familiar to Saulot:

 _"Child, it's time."_

Saulot turned his head and saw Haqim sitting on a rock. The boy approached the Antediluvian and Haqim said:

 _"It will… change you. But it will cleanse the evil from you. It is not your fault that your soul is tainted. But I will make it right!"_

Haqim then drank the boy's blood and every drop seemed to make the Assamite sick, as he was spitting it as he drank it. After the boy passed away, Haqim fed him his blood. Suddenly, a sound similar to an explosion was heard from far beyond. The night was illuminated by a large volcano erupting. The pieces of rock reached even the oasis, red as fire.

 _The night the stones spoke and the sky cried a blood rain…_

Saulot was back but ur-Shulgi managed to escape the grasp of the skeletons.

Suddenly, the priest's chanting stopped. Ur-Shulgi stabbed him with Gratiano's broken blade, taken from Saulot's hand. The Methuselah then regenerated, regrowing his arm almost in an instant. Gratiano then whispered:

"We're fucked."


	15. And The Skies Cried A Blood Rain

**New York City, New York, United States**

"I know, you probably wonder if you are dreaming, or if you OD'd with that coke you took this evening and now you are somewhere between life and death. I can assure you, friend, you are alive!"

"Who… what the fuck?"

"Shh, shh, it's alright. I know what you are going through right now. You want vengeance. You want to find that bastard and destroy his life and then, after you took everything from him, kill him slowly and painfully."

"Yeah but… who are you? How do you know about that?"

"I know. What if… I tell you that I can give you this and no one will ever know. Not police, not the feds, no one. No one but you and me."

"Why would you do that?"

"I want to help you get revenge, of course. No man should go through what you've gone through. What kind of beast rapes a pregnant woman and then forces her to abort her baby? And then kill her? From what I've heard, you would have had a healthy daughter."

"Fuck off, you freak! Untie me!"

"I know. It's painful. The legal system is fucked. Procedural mistake, wasn't it? They released your wife's rapist and murderer and the monster laughed in your face. But I can change that."

"How? You are a fucking junkie, worse than me! Look at your fucking eyes. Purple… what the fuck did you took?"

"Ah, my eyes? The color is part of the gift I want to give you. No man should experience the death of his child."

"How can you help me, freak?"

"I will give you a new life! I will make you a god, yes… a god of vengeance and destruction. A god whose justice puts fear in the hearts of men. But only if you say yes."

"P…please… I…"

Tesus took out a photo from his coat and showed it to the man:

"Terry's 30th birthday, wasn't it? She was so beautiful. And you looked so happy. The way you were touching her belly, knowing that inside her, your child grew."

The vampire shed a bloody tear. The tied man was scared:

"What? What the fuck…?!"

"I lost my child to a monster, just like you lost your family to that worm. I want vengeance, just like you. Let me give you my blood and remake you as a force of revenge and we will destroy everyone who wronged us!"

The tied man nodded. Tesus then said:

"Those of my age and my generation aren't siring childer in the modern times anymore. But with you, I will make an exception."

He started to feed on the man.

 **Chicago, Illinois, United States**

Critias stood on his armchair in his office at the University and in front of him, several other individuals, both male and female, waited for him to speak. The Greek vampire finally said:

"Brothers and sisters, the new happenings in our dark world are terribly concerning, especially as they threaten our very own seats of power. Now, I am sure that our society will be reorganized and now, we must act, not just observe."

One of the people in attendance, a woman, said:

"Saulot is back. An ancient. The Camarilla teaches us that ancients don't exist, that they are just stories told to frighten young Kindred into submission. But he is real and he is back. He wants to destroy the Tremere."

A man said:

"Good. The destruction of Clan Tremere would break their control over our destinies. We are scared of them. Their Thaumaturgy threatens us. If Saulot's sufficiently powerful to take on them, I say we back him up."

"To betray the Tremere would mean betraying the Camarilla. This we can't do."

"The Camarilla is more than just Tremere, sister. We will survive without the damnable mages. Saulot gives us light! Sun light! How many years have passed since your last sunrise, sister? Five hundred? Maybe more?"

"Six hundred and twelve."

"I want to see the sun and not just on TV and on the internet. I will join Saulot and I advise you to do the same. The Gangrel left, so can we."

Some of the vampires agreed with the man's speech. Critias then said:

"I know seeing the sun is tempting but is it really what we need to achieve our goal?"

A woman's laugh was heard in the room and everyone turned their eyes on her. She looked like a man with short hair and muscular body, dressed in a suit almost as expensive as Critias's tuxedo. She approached the elder's table and said:

"Wake up, old man! What is more important than circumventing our greatest weakness?"

Critias was incensed and said to the others.

"Excuse us. Tyler and I must talk privately."

The others left the office, leaving the two enemies alone. The ancient Brujah said to his clanmate:

"The only reason you are allowed in his room is the Brujah blood in your veins and the fact that I consider that in those perilous times, the clan is more important than our personal hatred but this boon I gave you doesn't allow you to speak, diablerist."

Tyler smiled knowing that she accomplished what she wished: to annoy the otherwise calm Critias. The hatred between the two Brujah was very powerful, as Tyler diablerized Critias's childe, Procet. Thus, the Greek understood Tesus' hatred for Beckett. The woman said:

"I don't give a fuck about your permission. You are blind, old man, blind to everything but your vaunted dreams of rebuilding Carthage."

"Carthage should be your dream too. You share my blood yet you don't share anything else of worth. Only fire, only desire for power and only immediate gain. That is your plan, Tyler? Do you want to betray your clan and join Saulot?"

"Tell me, Critias, haven't you craved to see the light of the day again? Or the great philosopher is above such desires? The sun is not just vanity, it's power. Imagine that, old man, to be able to walk into the world while your enemies sleep, bogged down by their vampiric weakness. You could kill them all and they cannot do shit to impede you."

"Saulot's gift is tempting, I admit. But also, it will upset the balance of power. He plans to destroy the Tremere and if he manages to do so, it will leave a power vacuum in our fair city, one I plan to exploit."

Tyler laughed:

"So this is your plan? To become Prince of Chicago?"

"Yes. Chicago will be the new Carthage. A new Eden! And you will help me, Tyler. The blood of my childe which gives you power now flows in you. My blood! That means, you are mine."

"I am nobody's."

"Then you will be hunted by every Kindred in the Camarilla for what you've done. And no matter how stubborn and strong you are, they will end you. But you are Brujah and a powerful resource, one that should not be left untapped. As we speak, somewhere in the frozen European north, a battle that will decide the fate of our kind takes place. Whoever wins, matters not. What matters is the Tremere are done. Either ur-Shulgi or Saulot will be the end of them. You are allied with the immortal child, the Tremere Antonescu, are you not?"

"You know very well we have a good professional relationship."

"Do you know that Antonescu is manipulated by someone in the shadows?"

"I have my suspicions."

"If this manipulation is discovered, it will speed up Clan Tremere's demise."

"I see."

"Then you know what to do. If you help me achieve this goal, I will forgive you for what you've done and I will give you a place of honor in the new Carthage I'm building. If you betray me, then all bets are off and you die."

Tyler frowned.

 **Island of Fjordborg, Norway**

Gratiano's suit was ruined, to the vain vampire's chagrin with each blow dealt by ur-Shulgi damaging it even more. Ever since the priest died, the Assamite turned into an unstoppable killing-machine, destroying almost a third of the Cappadocians that arrived with Lazarus and the Lasombra. The Faithless Son then stabbed ur-Shulgi again, this time in the throat, then tried to reach the Assamite Methuselah's blood with his right hand.

"Do you think I will fail once more for this trick?"

Ur-Shulgi jumped but in the air, he was intercepted by Odin who tried to bite his neck. The childe of Haqim was faster and managed to escape, returning to a safe place on the ground. Saulot then said to Gratiano:

"Can you hold him at bay? I will try to resurrect the priest."

"Do it. I will try."

Lazarus said:

"He's coming!"

Ur-Shulgi ran towards them but to their surprise, he didn't attack them. Instead, he tried to spit some of the acidic ichor on the priest's dead body. A solid shadow protected the corpse while taking the brunt of ur-Shulgi's attack. Gratiano then said:

"Take that priest to the Abyss."

The portal opened and a Celerity-powered Saulot took the priest through it. Gratiano said:

"Oh boy, a Lasombra, a Cappadocian and a Gangrel fighting against a demon-powered Assamite. This is the start of a particularly bad joke."

A voice was heard:

"Is there a place for me too in there?"

Set emerged from the ground and used his snake mouth to bite ur-Shulgi but soon, he started to bleed from his mouth and said:

"Damn acid blood…"

"How did you manage to return to the third generation?"

"Stupid whelp. You don't live as long as I without having a few tricks up your sleeve. But what do you know about this? You are no vampire. A vampire doesn't become the cum rag of all demons of Hell! A vampire becomes a god! Are you a god, ur-Shulgi?"

Ur-Shulgi engaged Set again, trying to parry the blows of the snake but he felt more and more weakened. He realized that the venom used by the Antediluvian is decreasing his strength. The Assamite decided to put some distance between himself and Set. However, the ancient god of Egypt said:

"Come back, you little bastard!"

From his snake-like mouth, a large amount of sand was expelled, hitting ur-Shulgi with the power of the desert and the scorching fire of Set's hatred. Gratiano grabbed ur-Shulgi from behind and forced him to take the blow head first. Both Methuselahs were knocked down. Gratiano said:

"This fucking sand… ugh!"

"Stop squirming, you will regenerate quickly enough."

Odin then struck ur-Shulgi with a large tree. The Gangrel's monstrous strength damaged the Assamite tremendously. The burned vampire started to cough black blood. The All-High said:

"Did you hear the snake, boy? You're no god! But I am!"

Odin's good eye became bright as the sun and a myriad of lightning bolts descended from the heavens to strike ur-Shulgi. He cried in pain as Odin's Path of the Levinbolt returned to him in full force.

"How do you like this Thaumaturgy, boy? Reminds you of the bloody Tremere?"

Odin then shaped the lightning bolts to form a cage around ur-Shulgi. Lazarus then entered it, using Rigor Mortis to completely paralyze the Assamite. Gratiano regenerated and added his shadows to the cage, making them as solid as reinforced steel. Inside, he could hear ur-Shulgi moaning and vomiting blood.

"Tough fucker. You did well, all of you."

Set approached Odin and said:

"Excuse me, _All-High_ , but I don't need your praise. I am a god. Gods smite trash like that."

"You are the god of desert and nothingness, Serpent. Under my auspice, my people discovered an entirely new world!"

"They did, did they? Then why did they come back to the Old World, tail between their legs?"

Lazarus said:

"Enough bickering."

"Ah, Lazarus. How glad to see you… outside Egypt!"

"I was getting bored. Pillaging, ruining and raping your country tends to get so tedious, especially after a thousand of so years…"

Set was incensed but Gratiano interfered:

"You swore to not fight Lazarus if he joins us."

"I suppose I did."

The cage suddenly exploded, revealing ur-Shulgi completely healed, but different: he now had demonic wings made of blood on his back. He then took it to the air.

"Oh, that's rich!"

"Shut the fuck up, Lasombra! Incoming!"

Thousands of bloody projectiles shaped like daggers rained upon the vampires below. The zombies and the skeletons controlled by Lazarus blocked many of them but some of them struck Odin. The All-High felt his flesh melting from his bones and jumped into the chasm, in pain. Ur-Shulgi said:

"I am the Angel of Haqim, the bringer of light and of justice. Blood is our pain, our power and our legacy! Justice will be served and it will be served through blood!"

Another volley of projectiles destroyed the last remaining summons of Lazarus. The Cappadocian used his Fortitude to deflect the projectiles hitting his body while Gratiano used his solid shadows to parry them. Set said:

"Get the hell away from here."

Gratiano used Celerity to get to safety while the Egyptian surrounded himself with strange green scarabs that emerged almost endlessly from the water beneath the Antediluvian's feet. Set bled on some of them and they coalesced into a gigantic red and green scarab that used its horn to strike ur-Shulgi, knocking him from the sky before he had an opportunity to fly away. The scarab then dissolved into a mass of blood that trapped the Assamite. Set said:

"You are not the only one with big toys. This vitae is just like flypaper: it catches insects such as yourself."

Ur-Shulgi realized the Egyptian Antediluvian didn't lie. He was trapped. Gratiano returned to Set and said:

"Good. Now let's see if your brother managed to revive the priest."

The Lasombra Methuselah entered the Abyss. Set and Lazarus remained to guard ur-Shulgi. The Cappadocian said:

"So, you're back."

"Yes, I am. You know, I always wanted to ask you something."

"What?"

"After you tasted the great gift of Serpentis I bestowed to those of my clan, how can you continue to deny the fact that I am a god?"

"Oh, but I deny it. You may be a god compared to the kine, Sutekh, but to me and to the rest of our bloodsucking kin, you are nothing more than another Cainite. A powerful one, I admit, but just another Cainite."

"I am not just another Cainite, Lazarus. I am a god. I am the answer to the prayers of mortal and immortal alike."

"A god creates. You don't have the power of creation."

"On the contrary, I have it. I created the greatest vampiric bloodline the world knows."

"You didn't create anything, Serpent. You simply corrupted what another one made."

Set was so angry that he tried to attack Lazarus but the Antediluvian was punched in the face by ur-Shulgi, who managed to break his bloody prison. The Egyptian returned the punch but his arm was severed by the gigantic claws manifested by the Assamite. While he didn't look too human before the fight, now ur-Shulghi looked more and more as a demon, manifesting claws and horns. The ground beneath ur-Shulgi then cracked when Odin emerged, trying to catch the Assamite. The All-High's wounds started to regenerate and now he was back into the fray. The portal to the Abyss opened and Gratiano reappeared, saying to Set and Lazarus:

"He can't revive the priest."

"Why? I saw him doing that plenty of time before, what's different now?"

"Ur-Shulgi did something to that corpse."

The demonic ur-Shulgi then tried to attack Gratiano but from the portal appeared another man, a thin, bald, elderly-looking person, dressed in a clean suit, though not as expensive as Gratiano's. The man had a straw in his mouth which he spat towards ur-Shulgi. The straw hit the Assamite with such a force that made a gigantic hole in the childe of Haqim's shoulder. The Assamite backed down. The strange man said:

"See, this can be called the straw that broke the camel's back? Oh… sorry… you're an Arabian, I said camel… that was racist from my part. But… you're from Alamut, that's in Syria. So you're Syrian, not Arabian."

Odin said:

"Who the hell are you?"

The man smiled and his words continued to pour from his motor mouth:

"An ally, as you can see. If I were an enemy, I would have attacked you instead of ur-Shulgi. Not that I wouldn't attack you if you attack me, so basically I'm your ally if you don't attack me."

Set said:

"You can't be… Where's your sire?"

"Gone. To the City of the Lights. That body of his isn't strong enough to fight ur-Shulgi. And I have to say, if you'll pardon my impoliteness, that your bodies aren't that strong either."

Saulot appeared from the portal and said towards the gate to the Abyss:

"Come on, friend, end this."

A vampire with dark skin emerged from the portal, a broken blade in his hand. It was none other than Haqim. Ur-Shulgi was shocked and said:

"My… my Father!"

The man which had the straw in his mouth closed his eyes and moments later, a huge explosion was heard and a large ash cloud emerged from the water miles away from the island. Red stones started to fall on the ground. The man said:

"Okay, now that's done. Now for the true bang!"

The other vampires realized that they weren't on the island anymore but in a desert oasis. The moon shone above them and ur-Shulgi fell from the sky in the water. Haqim appeared before him and said:

"I gave you the True Life. Now, I'm taking it from you!"

With the piece of the broken sword, Haqim severed ur-Shulgi's head, killing his childe. Suddenly, they were back on their former battlefield, on the now devastated island of Fjordborg. A fetid smell emerged from ur-Shulgi's body. Odin said:

"What the hell? How did you…?"

Set approached the mysterious man and said:

"If you knew how to kill the bastard, why didn't you do it before?"

"I didn't know. I had to look in the past, in the present, in the future, in the far future, in the far past… everywhere! And nowhere!"

"Speak sense, madman."

"Oh but I speak sense, only you can't perceive it as sense. You see, ur-Shulgi's Embrace took place during _the night when the stones spoke and the skies cried a blood rain_. Now, the sky cried a blood rain and the Hunter ended him, just as he began him. Or Embraced… semantics…"

Gratiano said to Haqim:

"This is my sword, or what's left of it. How could it kill ur-Shulgi?"

Haqim said:

"I will let our ally explain."

"Ur-Shulgi killed that priest with it. Big mistake. He completed the exorcism."

"What?"

"Did you think my Father would come here unprepared? The priest was not important because of his ritual. He was the ritual. Or did you think he could expunge demons because he was touched by God? He was filled to the brim with Obeah by the Unicorn's get. He was their man."

Gratiano turned to Saulot:

"What is this madman saying?"

"When ur-Shulgi killed Father Vieri, he touched the blessed energies of cleanliness that resided inside him. That cleansed ur-Shulgi of demons."

"Not of all, of course. Some demons are so stubborn. But cleaning him of demons wasn't enough of course. We had to end him permanently. You see, he was made under some conditions with some purpose in mind. Now, we undid that."

Lazarus said:

"You forced the sky to _cry a bloody rain_. I know you, vampire, you are Nissiku, the Clever Prince. How did you do that?"

"Oh, flatterer. Yes, that's my name. Or isn't? Sometimes, even I don't remember. Oh, the boom! Nothing too fancy. Just a nuclear warhead detonated in the bowels of an underwater volcano."

"Nuclear warhead? Are you fucking kidding me?"

"No, sir. But it was just a small one. That terrorist you brought us, Bibi? Biki? Whatever. That… guy told us he found a Cold War nuclear weapon dumping place and tried to rearm them. He managed to do just one, a small one, very small. But enough for me to do that!"

"That oasis. That was your power to rewrite reality, isn't it?"

"Again, correct. Like I said, I had to replicate the exact conditions of his Embrace in order to undo it."

Nissiku, the Clever Prince, was one of the most powerful childer of Malkav, a Methuselah of immense insight with frightening abilities that allowed him to temporarily create a new reality. Nissiku was considered even madder than his maker and was said to have used the forbidden Blessing of Chaos to become immune to every Discipline of the mind at the cost of becoming even more overwhelmed by insanity.

"Now, the soul of the priest was in the blade and the blood of Haqim was inside ur-Shulgi. So… bam!"

Haqim said:

"It pains me to end my most capable childe. But I couldn't forgive the injustice he did to me and to our clan. It had to be done."

Gratiano said:

"How did you wake up?"

"Nissiku undid whatever ur-Shulgi did to me."

"Yes, I did. It wasn't easy but still…"

Set said:

"Enough bragging. Let's get the hell away from here."

 **Paris, France, the next day**

Saulot, his brother Set, Gratiano de Veronese, Nissiku, Lazarus and a Muslim vampire stood at a table in one of the conference rooms of the hotel. The Salubri Antediluvian said:

"Ur-Shulgi's death was a great victory, a victory that would have not been possible without you. Congratulations."

Gratiano said:

"Hear, hear!"

Saulot continued:

"At this point in time, every Cainite in the world knows what we did."

Lazarus replied:

"Yes and that means, we need to move carefully now. It will be impossible to act in secrecy when every vampiric eyes are upon you."

"True."

Gratiano said to the Arabic vampire:

"What about your kind?"

"It's difficult to tell right now but with ur-Shulgi dead, there are no reasons for the outcasts to not return to the clan but they want to remain with your sect."

"We don't have a sect."

"Well, your… group. They want to fight against the Tremere."

"And the main clan?"

"Our Father is recovering. Soon, he will be at full strength. But until he returns, we are like a rudderless ship in the middle of the sea."

Saulot said:

"Haqim's return will do us good. We will help with everything we can, but I need an oath of loyalty from a leader of your choice, until my Antediluvian sibling returns to us."

"The only one I could think about is Al-Ashraf but he is with the Camarilla."

"Can you reach him?"

"We will try. We Assamites are a tight clan, so we tried to keep in touch with our schismatic brothers."

"Good. Do that."

The man bowed and left the room. Gratiano said:

"I was thinking. Compared to the Camarilla and the Sabbat we are nothing more than a… band of brothers. We need to become a political entity if we wish to challenge the Tremere."

"Gratiano, I am not interested in politics."

"Oh, but you are mistaken here. Unlike the Camarilla or the Sabbat, we offer certain… tangible boons that many vampires would do anything to have. We must think like a modern corporation: we offer something, they need that something so they join. It's for PR! In order to have people join us, they must first know we can protect them against their former sect, whichever that may be. Secondly, we need manpower. And thirdly, we must show them we can hold our own against the Tremere."

Nissiku laughed and said:

"True, true. You sound more like a Ventrue than a Lasombra. But hey, who am I to judge. I can sound Malkavian, Brujah, even like the Daughters of Cacophony!"

"I don't want to hear your singing voice!"

"Oh silly, I sing with my mind. See? I'm singing right now."

"So… where's your sire?"

"Umm, he needs to charge his batteries after that grueling fight against ur-Shulgi so until he comes back, I am here to represent our clan."

Gratiano said:

"At least he didn't sent that fucking guy, Abud."

Nissiku laughed:

"It would have been awful but he's dead."

"Good for us."

Saulot said:

"Abud?"

"A grandchilde of mine. He was a Nazi during World War 2. He considered himself of the purest Aryan stock. Thing is… he was black!"

The vampires laughed. Saulot then said:

"Well, good to have you with us, Nissiku. Of course Malkav sent us one of his finest childer to help us in the struggle."

Gratiano said to Saulot:

"Struggle… You sound like those goddamned Irishmen with your fucking struggle. It's a war. In a war, there are armies. There is the Camarilla, the Sabbat, we don't count the Anarchs because they are nuisances not soldiers and there's us. We need a banner to rally underneath."

Lazarus said:

"Yes. Too much division already destroyed many powerful clans. We need to be united."

"See, even the Cappadocian agrees. And we all know how he feels about loyalty."

Lazarus grunted but he let it slide. Set said:

"Just for the record, I am not joining your little club unless I get a position of leadership."

Gratiano said:

"To let the Great Snake that Corrupts rule the sect. How about that? No, that doesn't set any alarms in my head, no sir."

"I am a god. You are nothing more than dust!"

"A god who was humiliated by ur-Shulgi any time he and you engaged in combat."

"Say what?"

Saulot said:

"Please, enough! You are right, Gratiano. We need to adapt to these times."

"That was all I wanted to hear. I will leave for Madrid."

"What for?"

"The Friends of the Night are hiding there. We will discuss our secession from the Sabbat."

"Do whatever you need."

 **Chicago, Illinois, United States, several nights later**

" _In the name of Caine, the first one who called himself vampire, we declare our Three-Eyed Brotherhood to be a new organization that seeks to bring peace in a world torn by war. Ever since our forefather killed his brother, his childer and his brother's children were at war, killing each other and hating each other. Thus, we declare our war done, all crimes of the past forgiven. I, Saulot of Clan Salubri, childe of Enoch, childe of Caine, child of Adam, child of God, joined by Malkav, childe of Enoch, childe of Caine, child of Adam, child of God and by Gratiano de Veronese, childe of Lasombra, childe of Irad, childe of Caine, child of Adam, child of God, declare that our new sect is not a sect of hatred but one of peace. Anyone who thinks like us may join and all his or her crimes against us will be forgiven. Clans Salubri, Malkavian and Lasombra thus declare eternal friendship and brotherhood, with clans Malkavian and Lasombra declaring themselves antitribu, leaving their former sects forever. Also, Clan Assamite and those who call themselves Followers of Set declare their friendship towards us and we call them allies. These two entities thus end their millennia long neutrality and are welcomed in our new family. May the light give you the peace you are seeking!_ This letter, my brothers and sisters, has been sent to every major city all over the world. The Proclamation of Friendship, it's called. The Malkavians and Lasombra have joined Saulot but it seems the Assamites and the Snakes are kept at arm's length, allies not members. The Salubri _antitribu_ , those Furies of Sabbat also joined their clan and Antediluvian."

"So, what are we going to do, Critias?"

"Nothing. We shall remain with the Camarilla, at least until the Tremere are destroyed."

Tyler appeared again before Critias, ignoring the protests of her Brujah sister that spoke before:

"Nothing? Let's say this Brotherhood destroys the Tremere. What then? We will join? We will look like opportunists in his eyes. They will not trust us, just like they don't trust the Snakes."

A man replied:

"Tyler is right. Saulot wants friendship, I say we give it to him."

"And to bring the wrath of the Tremere on us? They may be weakened but they are not done."

"Ur-Shulgi broke the curse the mages put upon his clan with ease. Imagine what a third generation could do."

Some vampires agreed with Tyler. She then said to Critias:

"I will contact Brujah vampires over the world and we will declare ourselves _antitribu_ and offer our services to the Brotherhood. If you want to appear loyal to the Camarilla, by all means, do it."

"You would divide our clan?"

"Does anyone in the Camarilla expect that whenever a rebellious cause arises, a Brujah will stay still and loyal? We are drawn to it like moths to the flame but unlike those pesky insects, we will not be burned. We will become the flame!"

Tyler's rebel yell inspired the majority of the Brujah in the conference room to declare for her and the Brotherhood. They left, leaving Critias with the Camarilla loyalists. The ancient Greek frowned.

 **Somewhere in Northern Africa**

A group of hooded people approached a desolate plain. One of them touched the earth with his hand and chanted several words in a strange language. Large symbols appeared on the ground.

 **Canada, near the Polar Circle**

Odin the All-High kneeled before a large carved tree, the only tree that had leaves in that forest. Suddenly, beneath him, hands with claws emerged from the ground. The one-eyed Gangrel grinned.

 **Moscow, Russia**

"MOTHER! MOTHER!"

The woman entered her son's chamber and said:

"Roman, what's wrong, darling?"

"I… had an awful nightmare!"

"It's alright, baby. It was just a dream."

"It was horrible… This house… walked. On chicken legs! And those eyes… Oh, mommy, those eyes!"

"Your father should stop telling you scary stories. Baba Yaga doesn't exist, honey. It's just a story from our country's folklore. Now go back to sleep. I will watch over you."

Outside the house, a young boy with long hair looked at the pale moon above him.

 _Author's note: Special thanks to KhornateNutjob for helping me coin the name of Saulot's sect. Cheers!_


	16. Sweet As Pie

**Chicago, Illinois, United States**

"Sir, the University is closed for the night. Return in the morning."

"Oh, but sir, I… my son is student here, you know? Stu-dent! He learns stuff. I wanted to bring him food, you know? His mom bakes one hell of a pie!"

"In that case, you should go to the students' dorm room, though I don't believe you will allowed to enter. It's almost midnight."

"Oh, gee golly! Well, it seems I'll have to eat the pie all by myself."

The man bit the guard's neck, drinking from him. Then, he hid the unconscious man in some bushes and entered the University grounds.

In his office, Critias told his students about democracy and about how every man has something to say when it comes to elect officials. Someone knocked at the door:

"We are busy. Who is it?"

"I… I wanted to bring my son some pie!"

Critias looked at his students who were as dumbfounded as him. The ancient Greek used Auspex and realized the man at the door is a Kindred. He sighed and said:

"Enter."

The vampire entered the room, wearing a flamboyant purple suit with a yellow shirt and a red tie. On his head, he wore a red, white and blue fedora. Critias' students looked strangely at the man but the Brujah said:

"Please, children, leave us alone."

The young men left the room and the visitor said:

"Not a single girl within them. Then it's true what they say about Greek love, isn't it?"

"Nissiku. The last person I expected to come here. If you want to play the feminist thing, go to San Francisco. Now tell me what you want."

"To break the shackles of patriarchy! To empower women! To show that we can do it too!"

"Now you're a woman? I didn't know those surgeries worked on those of our kind."

Nissiku then changed his voice into a womanly one:

"Oh baby, I can be whatever you want."

"I want you gone, unless you tell me what you want. And do not use Disciplines here. It's Elysium."

"Elysium for Camarilla."

"Yes but I expect you to act decently enough to respect that."

"Oh, fine. So, do you want me to lie to you or to tell you the truth?"

"Does it matter what I want? You will tell me whatever you want, truth or lie."

"Okay, so… _We all live in a yellow submarine, yellow submarine, yellow submarine_!"

"That's a metaphor for…?"

"That's the Beatles."

"If you intend to annoy me, you will find it very difficult to do so."

"Okay, it seems I didn't give my best shot… ahm! _Happy nation, we're living in a happy nation! Where the people understand and dream of the perfect man!_ "

Critias closed his eyes, visibly annoyed. Nissiku then said, this time with a serious voice:

"I want to kill Nicolai Antonescu."

Critias opened his eyes wide:

"Why?"

"Why?"

"Yes, why?"

"I am a childe of Malkav. Malkav is Saulot's brother. I am thus Saulot's nephew. Or it doesn't work like this? Anyway, Saulot hates Tremere. Malkav hates Tremere. I hate Tremere. See where I'm going to?"

"Why Antonescu? You want to kill Tremere, you find yourself a neonate away from his chantry and do whatever you want with him. No, this is too specific. And strangely enough, it comes right after Tyler decided to join your Brotherhood. Besides, she and Antonescu are tight. Unless she double-crossed him."

"The second."

"Ah, I see. Do you know where Antonescu is tonight?"

"Away from town. He'll return tomorrow night."

"I see you've done your homework."

"The dog ate my homework."

"Now, why are you telling me about your plan? I am a Camarilla, like Antonescu. And killing the Tremere primogen of Chicago is a bad political move if you want to appear as the good guys to the Camarilla."

"I don't care about the Camarilla."

"Of course you don't. But think for a bit."

"Okay. Hmmmmmm…. Done. I'm killing Antonescu."

"As you wish. I will prevent him, of course."

"You'll do no such thing."

"Why?"

"Why?"

"Yes, why?"

"If you don't tell him I'm coming to bring him pie, I'll tell you about the traitor in your little f…ornication group."

"They are not my… what traitor?"

"One of your kiddies is a Tory spy. And not British Tory. Our kind of Tory…"

"A Toreador spy? What…?"

"Yes sir, Critias, sir."

"How do you know?"

"Asking a Malkavian how does he know stuff it's like asking a fish how does it knows to ride a bicycle."

"I… don't understand this analogy."

"Uh… oh, stupid me… What I was trying to tell you is that one of the kids is a Toreador plant. Presenced, Dominated, you name it."

"Who?"

"Who?"

"Yes, who?"

"You know them better than me. Aren't they your fu… sex buddies? Figure it out."

"Nissiku, I am not romantically involved with any of my students. If you know something, tell me or otherwise, begone."

"Look for the artist. Ta, ta!"

Nissiku disappeared, leaving Critias thinking. He tried to open the database he had on his students on his laptop but when he pressed ENTER, it started

 _WE ALL LIVE IN A YELLOW SUBMARINE, YELLOW SUBMARINE, YELLOW SUBMARINE!_

Critias closed his eyes.

Outside the University, Nissiku met a beggar who was sitting on the sidewalk. The Clever Prince said:

"Excuse me, sir, might I give you some money?"

"W…what?"

"Some money! Cash! Greens!"

"Yeah, yeah!"

Nissiku took out a large envelope from his pocket and gave it to the man before leaving. The beggar counted the money and said:

"Hey, man… there's like $5000 here, what…"

The Clever Prince didn't answer.

 **Paris, France, the following night**

The teen was shouting in the middle of the street and some of the people who knew English laughed:

"You are totally not cool! I want to go to the club!"

"Dear, I told you a million times: you don't know the language, you don't know the city and you don't know anyone here. I knew it was a bad idea to come here."

"Whatever, dad. I'm so bored!"

"Jesus, Joanne! Try not to be so loud."

Suddenly, the girl ran off. Her father shouted:

"Joanne! Come back! Joanne!"

She was laughing. She hailed a cab and told the driver:

"Do you understand English? Club! The coolest club in the city!"

The man nodded. Half an hour later, they reached a club in Popincourt, the 11th arrondissement of Paris. After the girl left the cab, a dark haired man approached her and said:

"Hey there, sweetie."

"Hiya, handsome. Nice to see an American here."

The man then touched the girl's forehead. She fell down and started to convulse. Before anyone on the street could react, a fast moving presence then took her and the man on a rooftop. The presence was Tesus.

"You stupid fuck! I told you that you are not ready!"

"But… I thought."

"You thought? You didn't think, asswipe!"

"Sorry, Tesus."

" _Sorry, Tesus_ … We were supposed to use this bitch to draw Saulot and my sire outside that goddamned hotel, not to kill her."

"What? She's dead?"

"With what you did to her, she might as well be. You liquefied her brain… Dumb fuck."

"I'm sorry, I didn't want that! Oh, God!"

"Listen. You are a fifth generation vampire. That means you're very powerful. Too powerful to use your entire mental might on mortals. This requires control. Try another. I'll dispose of this one."

After Tesus got rid of the girl, he returned on the rooftop near the club. A vampire reached him but it was not his new childe but a different Cainite, a purple eyed man with glasses. Tesus was elated:

"Finally! You came to me, willingly! If I knew, I wouldn't have sent my idiot childe to spring traps. You fucking cocksucker… Looking at me with my childe's eyes! I will kill you and then I will feed my ghoul with your ashes and I will laugh while he shits you out of him!"

"Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?"

"A joker! My childe's diablerist is a damned joker!"

Beckett then said:

"It was self-defense. Your childe attacked me when I tried to retrieve him. I didn't want to diablerize him. It just happened."

"Oh, so it just happened, right? Just happened to stick your fucking fangs in his poor neck and drink from him. Do you know what you've done, stupid fuck? Long ago, I killed a Tzimisce fleshcrafter. It was the night I… gave Life to Nicolaus. After I turned him, that Tzimisce's sire found me. He wanted to kill my poor Nicolaus but I didn't let him. I wanted to kill him but then… I discovered something. I sealed him away and my poor baby was the seal."

"What? Who was that?"

"Who was that? If you were interested in **who was that** , you should have asked me, not eat my beloved childe!"

"Malkav sent me to get the boy. I didn't… He should have told me."

"Father doesn't know about the Tzimisce. Or did you think he was omniscient? He doesn't know about my plight. I joined the Sabbat just to fight people like him, people who have the audacity to declare themselves gods and kings and rulers. This Tzimisce I sealed with a purpose. And now he's free."

"I didn't know. Tell me who was he."

"Does it matter? A nameless bastard, just one of the myriad descendants of the Eldest. But the secret he harbors… oh…"

Tesus' childe appeared before his maker, bringing another young girl. His sire told Beckett:

"Beckett, meet Jason. Jason, meet Beckett."

"Beckett? So this is the guy you want to kill!"

"Yes, he is the murderer and diablerist of your brother. Kill him!"

Jason ran towards Beckett but powered by the blood of a fifth generation vampire, the Gangrel managed to dodge the neonate's punch. Though fifth generation too, Jason was still inexperienced and unskilled in the subtleties of Cainite power. The Discipline he seemed to favor was Potence, taught to him by Tesus as their clan's natural Dementation was seemingly impossible for the man to learn.

"How do you feel, Beckett? You are able to fend Jason because of my Nicolaus' blood."

Beckett fought like he never fought before. He moved effortlessly and the inspiration he felt was tremendous. He was able to use powerful Disciplines and after knocking Jason down, Beckett tried to deliver a lethal blow. Tesus intervened and grabbed Beckett by the throat, lifting him without any problems.

"You wanted to kill another childe of mine… just like your Antediluvian bitch did so many centuries ago. Just like you did."

Tesus then looked down to the bustling street in front of the club. He said:

"Look at them. Oblivious to us, oblivious to our suffering, oblivious to anything but their arrogance and greed. Let's give them a show they'll never forget!"

"Wait… the Masq…"

"What? Masquerade? I don't give a shit about that. Not anymore. And you wouldn't too, if you saw what I've seen."

Tesus then jumped with Beckett in his hand, slamming him to the ground. The asphalt underneath the Gangrel cracked and people started to shout and to run:

"Mon dieu! Mon dieu!"

"Nous sommes des vampires! Les vampires existent!"

Tesus' purple eyes then became bright and suddenly the entire gathering of people in front of the club had the same eyes.

"They will tear you to shreds!"

Beckett realized that despite his jump in generation, he was still no match to Tesus. The far older and more experienced Malkavian did what could be considered an impressive display of Dementation, if it wasn't breaking the Masquerade right there. He instilled in the crowd a maddening rage and they ran towards the two Cainites. Tesus jumped on the rooftop leaving Beckett dazzled and at the mercy of the kine. Before they could touch him, they fell down unconscious. Tesus then cried:

"Father!"

Before Beckett appeared a man with messy hair and a crooked nose which had a short cropped beard as black as his hair. He had small eyes and was dressed in just a simple black robe. He said:

"You were told to stay at the hotel until you adapted to your new state of existence. Go there at once."

Beckett said:

"What about them?"

"The mortals? They were high and forced into a frenzy by some stuntmen's fight scene."

Beckett left and Malkav appeared before Tesus.

"My childe."

"Father."

"Is that my new grandchilde?"

"Yes, he is."

Malkav then staked his childe's progeny while Tesus protested. The Antediluvian said:

"I didn't know the Gangrel will drink from your childe. If I knew, I would have stopped that."

"Yeah, thanks for your fucking regrets. Thoughts and prayers, right?"

Malkav then slapped Tesus so hard that almost beheaded him.

"You always were an unruly childe. Listen to me. You will end your pathetic dreams of revenge and you will listen. If you don't, I will end you."

Tesus was horrified and said:

"You're bullshitting me!"

Malkav slapped him again.

"Every time you swear, I will hit you."

"Fuck you!"

Tesus was slapped again. Purple smoke emerged from his wounds which was regenerating.

"You want Beckett dead, right? Well, I will give him to you on the condition that you go to the island of Malta and find this family."

Malkav produced a picture from his robe and showed it to his Methuselah childe: a man, a woman, a girl and a boy smiling happily.

"Meet the Romano family. A happy, normal family in La Valletta, Malta. Up until the girl was taken by a strange paralysis that lasts exactly six hours each day. During the non-paralysis hours, she wanders around the house and speaks in tongues."

"So what? Some pedo demon is mindfucking her…"

Another slap. While his pride was wounded, Tesus knew Malkav couldn't be fought, especially now that he was in his own body. The Antediluvian continued:

"It is not a demonic possession. Her symptoms are similar to those whose True Name is somehow… disturbed."

Tesus rolled back his eyes and sighed. He knew what that meant.

"For fuck's sake…"

Another slap.

"… what do you want to do with him?"

"I need him here for something I want to do. He was one of the only three childer of mine that didn't answer my call. You, him and Lamdiel."

"Then send me to find Lamdiel."

"I know where he is. He will be retrieved, but not by you. You need to find him."

"How do you know it was him that did that? There are countless ass…people that use True Names. Mages, Followers of Set, some infernalists."

"No magic activity was detected there. And Set told me that wasn't his clan's doing. Also, no infernalist would dare set foot in Malta."

"Yeah, because Sutekh the Serpent is the god of truth."

"I would have known if Set was lying. Your pathetic display of strength endangered all of us. Your childe will remain with us, staked in a coffin, until you return with your brother. If you don't, he will be killed and I will personally make sure that you will not sire another childe ever again. You have seven days and seven nights to accomplish your mission. When you reach Malta, you will receive the blessing of the sun and you will be able to walk during the day. Need I remind you that you must use that power only for the purpose of finding your brother?"

"No, I will use that power to ravage the entire island."

Another slap.

"I didn't swear, you know?"

"But you acted stupid. Go."

Malkav disappeared, taking Jason with him. Tesus was angry like a child scolded by his parent in front of his friends. The Methuselah then closed his eyes and concentrated, trying to find out some semblance of clarity in the Cobweb. Nothing.

 **Chicago, Illinois, three nights later**

At the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, some of the local Camarilla primogen were having a meeting in the conference room. Critias, the Brujah Primogen was talking with Nicolai Antonescu, the child-Tremere and Primogen of his clan. The Tremere was dressed in an impeccable suit, black with a red tie. The philosopher said to him:

"With all due respect, the Malkavians' defection hurts us tremendously. Look at this. The others are so scared of this Saulot thing that they hide like rats."

A beautiful woman said to Critias:

"Not us, my dear."

"That monster will be taken down, I assure you, good Critias."

Critias then drank some blood from the goblet and said:

"Your optimism is encouraging but we are talking about several third generation vampires. You don't play games with thirds. You are the game when it comes to them."

The woman laughed:

"If those ancients really wanted to mess up things in our fair city, they would have tried it already."

"Lady Annabelle, do not underestimate them…"

The Brujah's sentence was interrupted by a young vampire who entered the room and said to Nicolai:

"Sir, you have to turn on the TV. It's madness!"

Nicolai used the remote control to turn on the large TV in the conference room.

 _"So, what is it? Anthrax? Some kind of nerve agent?"_

 _"We don't know. The CDC have sealed off the area surrounding the University."_

"What? The University?"

 _"Hold on, Richard, we have new information. Colin, what can you tell me?"_

 _"I am here with a representative from the CDC, Mr. Ichabod Smith."_

 _"Thank you. Currently, the substance found in the envelope is nothing like we've ever seen before. It's not anthrax, I repeat, it's not anthrax. I know the people are scared of a terrorist attack but according to the FBI, no one claimed this attack."_

 _"Mr. Smith, do you believe this substance is somehow tied with the anthrax letter attacks earlier this year?"_

 _"I have no idea, you must ask the FBI. An entire medical team is doing everything to solve this problem. You have to be patient."_

 _"Thank you, Mr. Smith"_

 _"Thanks, Colin. For those of you who don't know, a homeless man received an envelope containing $5000 from an unknown man three days ago. Tonight, he started to have strange symptoms such as rash and high fever."_

"What the hell? That was no anthrax. That was cake flour."

The three primogen looked at the man standing in front of them, dressed in a bright orange suit with a purple cowboy hat. Nicolai said:

"You are a Kindred. Who are you?"

"Umm? Aaa, let's see… The beautiful lady is Annabelle Jinglebell…"

"Triabelle! And who the hell are you?"

"The old man is Critias. How are you doing, old chap?"

"Nissiku."

"What? This man is Nissiku?"

"Correctly, Lady Cowbell. I am Nissiku! And the little one is… Nicolai!"

"I don't know who are you but you can't be Nissiku."

"And why, pray tell, can't I be Nissiku?"

"He's a myth."

"You mean **I'm a myth**. Or **You're a myth, Lord Nissiku, sir**. Look at this boy. He studied the mysteries of Clan Tremere for hundreds of years and all that mystical tomfoolery and now he can't believe I am Nissiku."

Critias sighed and said to Nicolai:

"He is Nissiku. I know the man since the old days."

"Exactly. The old days, those when were thrived and you weren't even alive."

"Nissiku or whoever you may be, I will not be insulted in my city."

Annabelle Triabelle left leaving the Malkavian, the Tremere and the Brujah alone.

"Ladies first, right?"

"What do you want? Did you cause that chemical attack?"

"I told you, that was just cake flour. I was trying to make a pie but it seems no one is interested."

Blood vines encroached on Nissiku but the Malkavian turned them into apples pies and hurled them at Nicolai. The Tremere dodged them and realized that those pies were acidic.

"What the…"

The vampire who told the primogen to turn on the TV tried to attack Nissiku but the ancient Methuselah killed him immediately with just a swing of his richly encrusted sword. The Clever Prince then started to sing:

" _Oooh, the bear flew over the ocean, the bear flew over the ocean, the bear flew over the ocean to see what he could see! He saw a powerful nation, he saw a powerful nation, he saw a powerful nation and all our people were free!_ "

A gunshot hit Nicolai in his shoulder. Critias then said:

"It's no use. Thaumaturgy won't work against him."

"Why?"

"Because he can turn everything into pure madness. Everything. You attack him, he returns his attacks in unexpected ways."

"Exact-a-mundo!"

Nicolai then desperately tried to use Dominate but the Clever Prince laughed:

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. I am disappointed in you, little Nicolai. Haven't you learn the two golden rules of Dominate? One: you can't Dominate someone that is a lower generation than yours and secondly… you can't dominate Nissiku the Clever Prince!"

"He's right. You can't Dominate him. Caine himself can't Dominate him."

"Then help me, Critias! You are near as strong as him!"

"Help him, Critias! The poor baby boy can't help himself. Oh… It seems help is coming!"

A young woman appeared in the room. Nicolai then said:

"Portia, please! He's too powerful."

"Portia? Portia! Ahahahaha!"

The woman then engaged Nissiku who dodged her punches and kicks without problem. Critias then said:

"Run, primogen Antonescu!"

Nicolai tried to run but realized his legs were glued to the floor with a strange, gooey substance. Nissiku then grabbed Portia and jumped over the balcony with her.

"Quickly, Critias, help me!"

The Brujah said:

"You have to cut off your legs. It's the only way!"

"What? No!"

"You'll regenerate."

Nissiku appeared and threw a fist of ash at Nicolai's face.

"Gee golly, Critias. You would mutilate the poor boy?"

The Clever Prince then chopped off Nicolai's head, turning him into a pile of ash and giving him his Final Death. The Brujah said:

"You are completely mad, Nissiku. The entire Camarilla will hunt you for what you have done?"

"For killing the kid? No, sir. They will hunt me for this!"

The Clever Prince then grabbed some of Nicolai's ashes and ingested them. He then opened his vein and painted a strange symbol on his forehead. His eyes then turned red and after a while, he said:

"Damn it. It seems it's the wrong ritual."

"What have you done?"

"Before I came here, I snuck in our dead kid's mansion and took every mystical tome he had. One of the rituals was about killing every descendant and ghoul a vampire has in one stroke, by using some of that vampire's ash. I only managed to kill his childer and ghouls, not his more distant descendants."

"Sweet Athena… The Tremere have something like this?"

"No, I was just joking. No, I'm not joking. I felt his childer's deaths. And his ghouls'. Did you know he ghouled almost half the lawyers in the city? Good luck explaining that to the kine authorities."

Critias was shocked. Portia suddenly appeared behind the ancient and said:

"I'm going to miss him. He did such nice things in bed."

"Ugh, that's sex with a minor in this jurisdiction, right?"

Portia was not impressed, ignoring Nissiku. She said to Critias:

"Tell your maker that I want to parley."

The three Cainites left the room.

" _Ladies and gentleman, it's quite incredible. The substance found in the envelope that terrorized Chicago today is nothing more than cake flour. Though initially believed to be a nerve agent or even anthrax, the latest tests confirmed the substance's composition._ "

 **Somewhere in Russia**

The man emerged from his coffin and opened his eyes. They were black and without pupils. Around him, a group of cloaked figures bowed. He then spoke with a horribly guttural voice in an ancient language:

"It's time, children. The time for redemption is near."


	17. Confession of Blood

**La Valletta, Malta**

The day was hot and not even the sea breeze could cool it. Tesus arrived on the harbor, shaking under the sun. He was afraid the yellow star in the sky will burn him at any moment. From behind him, Gratiano de Veronese appeared, wearing a black T-shirt with the Maltese flag on it and underneath it, an I love Malta message. He had black pants and sandals which exposed his pale, scarred toes. Tesus laughed:

"You look so fucking stupid."

"I look like a tourist, just as you must. I bought you some sunglasses."

"I don't need them."

"It's Malta, you need them to hide those peepers. There are hunters in every corner."

Tesus sighed and covered his eyes with the sunglasses provided to him by Gratiano.

"Let's go to the hotel. Like I said, we must look like any other tourist. Then we go to the address your sire gave and inquire about the girl."

"Don't tell me what to do, Lasombra asshole!"

"Fine, then I will tell Malkav you are uncooperative and he will kill your new childe."

"Aaaargh!"

The two Methuselahs checked in to a seaside hotel. There, a clerk speaking an English flavored with an accent said to them:

"So, Mr. Veroni, as you asked, we're giving you our best room. It has a bar, a Jacuzzi and a double bed."

Tesus said:

"Why would we need a double bed?"

"Uh… Sorry, sir, I thought you two… I'm sorry. We'll rectify the mistake."

Gratiano then laughed:

"No problem. Keep it as it is. I don't mind sharing the bed. Isn't that right, Theodore?"

"Right."

Tesus left for the room while Gratiano paid. He then said:

"Forgive my… boyfriend. He comes from a conservative country, you know how it is."

"I completely understand, sir. You will find Malta is very tolerant to the LGBT community."

"That I know. I saw the rainbow sticker outside. A good day to you!"

"Likewise, sir."

Gratiano smiled the whole way to the room. Inside, Tesus protested:

"Now I'm your fucking lover?"

"Weren't you banging that childe of yours long ago?"

"I wasn't banging him. I loved him."

"Love, bang, it's the same."

"What about you, Gratiano? Did you liked boys or girls when you were alive?"

"I was a Catholic priest then."

"Ah, so young boys."

"Do I look Irish? Hey look, a full bar."

Gratiano approached the minibar and picked three bottles of whiskey. He then went to the bathroom and emptied them in the toilet. The Lasombra Methuselah then filled the bottles with the contents of several blood bags he was carrying with him.

"Luckily for us, these bottles are dark. Want a drink?"

"Yeah."

Tesus drank from a blood bag. He was parched and the blood revitalized him. He said:

"Where did you get the blood from?"

"You remember that annoying kid from the ship? The one who struck me with that football?"

"Don't tell me…"

"No, you asshole. That's his father you're drinking."

"Tastes good."

"Maltese shipping magnate. I wanted to try some of the… local flavor."

While Tesus was finishing his blood, Gratiano said:

"It's not really Beckett's fault, you know?"

The purple eyed vampire was incensed:

"What do you know about it? Of course you will take the diablerist's side."

"I take the Brotherhood's side. And Beckett is an important part of it. You would do well not to create any friction, Tesus."

"The Brotherhood… You once were loyal to the Clan Lasombra. Then you betrayed the loyalists and now, you betrayed the Sabbat. That makes you a what? Double turncoat?"

"Unlike you, friend, I care about my clan. And not just about my progeny."

An hour later, Gratiano said:

"Let's go."

The two vampires left the hotel. Gratiano changed his clothes to one of his expensive suits while Tesus remained with his jeans and leather jacket. La Valletta, despite being a pretty small city, was bustling with tourists and locals, especially merchants. The Lasombra bought a small falcon statue. Tesus said:

"What's that?"

"The Maltese falcon."

"That was an American movie."

"Yes. But hey, why can't they gain something from it?"

After a while, Tesus said:

"Lot of churches."

"They are a religious people."

"It must give you some pride, isn't it?"

"What for?"

"To see your faith becoming so important. Your religion shaped the world as we know it."

"Fuck my religion. I wasn't a priest because I believed but because of the influence it gave me. Sure, there are true believers among us, but not this Lasombra."

"You don't believe in God?"

"I believe in God. Wasn't he who started this whole Cainite thing? I don't believe in the _God is love_ bullshit the church teaches the fools. If God is love, would he hate the woman who bore a child outside marriage? The man who loved another man? The creature who feeds on the blood of man because it otherwise can't survive? No, friend. This God is wrathful and hateful and when I look upon any statue of Jesus and saints or any other religious icon, I can feel the hate in their eyes. You know, I think Saulot is more of a god than any other god of any religion. For thousands of years we Cainites tried to find a way to walk into the sun unhindered and unhurt yet none managed to find a more permanent solution. Now, here we are. After Saulot bathed us in that light, we… changed. We await the day not with fear and hatred but with love and impatience. Did you notice the blue of the water when we arrived to port? Have you ever seen such a color, Tesus?"

"When I lived."

"Yes, when you lived. Thousands of years ago. And in these millennia of night, haven't you at least once craved to see the sun again without burning? To see bustling streets filled with people and not empty and cold streets filled with tramps and lowlifes?"

"I did."

"And now you can enjoy this gift too. Did God brought this wondrous grace upon yourself?"

"I suppose not."

"And this is why I say it, buddy: fuck religion."

"If that priest on the ship would have heard you…"

"He would have blew me. But I'm afraid I'm too old for him. Guys like him "

"Kinky."

"And true. You know, for a vampire who is thousands of years older than me, you seem kind of… naïve."

"Naïve?"

"Did you believe the shit you said to people when you were a priest? You know, back in the day?"

"It wasn't shit. It was the truth."

"Ah, so you're a true believer. Like I said, some of my fellow Lasombra are like that. They think God will save them from what they've become. Fools."

"I am not a believer. I don't need to believe. I know what I saw."

"And what did you see?"

"The future."

"Oh, you've seen the future, _brother, it was murder_!"

"What?"

"Leonard Cohen."

"Is that a singer?"

"Yeah, pretty good one."

"What the hell is with vampires and singing? Nissiku wouldn't stop singing as well."

"Well, I love music. Probably you know better than I but after we got turned, what was left for us? Food was taken away from us, drink as well. Sex as well. Instead we got blood, betrayal, intrigue and of course, music. So, what did you see?"

"In the following years a pope will resign, UK will leave the EU and… oh yeah, a reality show star will become the US president after a black guy leaves the office while defeating a woman in the election."

"Oh… I don't know what to say about that. Well, I was thinking more about us vampires, you know?"

Tesus didn't say anything. Gratiano said:

"That bad, huh? Ah, it seems we've reached the house. Let me do the talking."

Gratiano knocked at the door and a young woman opened after a minute or so. She spoke in Maltese:

"Can I help you?"

"I am father Martino Piati, investigator for the church. This is father Daniel O'Reilly from Ireland."

"Fathers."

"Do you know English? It will be preferred to talk in English so that Father O'Reilly can understand us."

"Of course, yes. Come in, please."

After the two Cainites entered the house, the woman started to scream and passed out. Tesus said:

"What the hell?"

Gratiano sighed. He looked at a mirror and he could only see Tesus in it.

"Fuck, she saw the mirror. Keep her sedated and take her to bed."

The Lasombra used his Auspex to scan the house for other people. Two children were upstairs, the only inhabitants not counting their mother. The Methuselah noticed the girl's aura was… strange. Usually mortal children had white auras to reflect their innocence. This girl's aura was changing in every color possible, like she was in a frenzy. Her brother's aura was orange, the color of fear. Gratiano used Celerity to reach the children's room. The boy started to cry but was Dominated into sleep by the Lasombra. Tesus reached the room too. He said:

"Let me try something."

Tesus got on his knees and focused. His eyes started to become brighter and brighter until they seemed like two purple flames in the Malkavian's head. The girl's eyes became purple too and kneeled before Tesus. The Cainite then extended his right hand towards Gratiano who hesitated but then grabbed it. The Lasombra's eyes became purple too. The world around Gratiano changed. They were now on a beach but the water was purple and the sky was pink. The girl was there and Tesus too. The Lasombra asked:

"Is this the Madness Realm?"

"The name those outside my clan given to this place is so awful. It is a… plane of meditation. Somewhere we can go and rebalance ourselves."

"You? Balanced?"

Tesus ignored Gratiano and approached the girl who was tugging her doll close to her chest. The Malkavian asked in Maltese:

"What is your name, child?"

"Sandra…"

"Sandra. Beautiful name. Tell me, what happened with you? Why are you hurting so much?"

She cried. The Malkavian couldn't understand why as the plane of meditation serves as a pocket dimension of calm and tranquility and no one inside should be so disturbed. Something happened to her and the childe of Malkav was intrigued to no end. Gratiano said:

"I feel strange here. It's like I am being watched."

"Yes, it's weird. It seems the girl is lost to us."

"Why?"

They returned to the children's room. Tesus said:

"She's under demonic influences. It was not my brother who consumed her True Name."

"Are you fucking kidding me? A girl was possessed and the island's wards didn't flare up?"

"I don't think she was attacked here. Father said there were no demonic influences on the island."

"DEMONS! MONSTERS! GET AWAY FROM MY CHILD!"

The children's mother attacked Gratiano with a fork but the Lasombra immobilized her immediately. Her eyes were red from crying.

"I thought you were supposed to keep her sedated."

"I couldn't focus on keeping her sedated and the meditation plane at the same time!"

The Italian Methuselah asked her:

"Tell me. What happened with your girl? Answer me truthfully and I swear I will not hurt you."

"YOU MONSTER! YOU CAME HERE TO HURT MY DAUGHTER!"

"No, I didn't. I want to save her. Tell me, what happened?"

The woman spat at Gratiano:

"MONSTERS LIKE YOU HURT HER! BEASTS WITHOUT REFLECTIONS!"

"What? Someone without reflection attacked your daughter?"

"YOU MONSTER!"

Gratiano was shocked. She let go of the woman who climbed the bed and hugged her daughter.

"What is your name?"

"S…SCREW YOU!"

"Please, I want to help your daughter!"

"YOU ARE LIKE THE OTHER ONE. HE… HE DID THINGS WITH HER! CUT HER!"

"What?"

"I…"

"Please, every information you give me counts!"

Gratiano bared his fangs and the woman passed out again. The Lasombra said to his sectmate:

"I don't even have to ask to know where that cut is. It's… somewhere deep."

"In her, like… you know, thing?"

Gratiano nodded. Tesus was angry:

"Fucking monsters! Asshole demons!"

"I never thought I would cross paths with them again."

"Who are they?"

"Clan Lasombra's darkest secret. Tell your sire that I go to Rome."

"I'll go with you."

"No. Non-Lasombra are not allowed there and I don't need those people angry. Take the girl and return to Saulot. He may give her peace just like he does to your lot."

"It doesn't last."

"I know. Take the woman and the boy too. If the father comes home, take care of him but don't kill him."

"Since when you are ordering me around?"

"Since I have the key of solving this mystery."

Gratiano used Celerity and disappeared. Tesus wondered what was going on.

 **Rome, Italy, several hours later**

Gratiano was on the top of the Colosseum, admiring Rome and remembering how it was hundreds of years ago when he was alive. Behind him, someone appeared:

"Hello, Gratiano de Veronese."

The Methuselah turned his head and saw Nissiku, dressed all in black with a pink tie and with a large black hat on his head.

"Nissiku. I told your brother I can't have anyone from other clans following me."

"So I've heard. But you need someone like me, you know?"

"For what? I don't plan on detonating nukes in the city. Or to do a chemical attack."

"It was just cake flour."

"Whatever. How did you come here so fast, anyway?"

"Time and space are meaningless when it comes to me. Especially for a good cause… the girl which was marked in her va-jay-jay. Do you think they used knives or… claws? I can't imagine what's worse."

Gratiano was disgusted:

"Don't mock her. No one should suffer like that, especially not a child. Your brother talks too much."

"He didn't tell me anything. We aren't really on speaking terms, you know?"

"I don't care. Leave."

"I won't leave. Not when the Angellis Ater are up and at it again all of a sudden."

The Lasombra froze:

"What do you know about them?"

"Some crazy mix-up between Lasombra and Baali. They worship Satan. Want to bring Hell on earth. Really bad guys, you know? And crazy too. Makes me sane in comparison."

"They were a huge fucking problem back in the day."

"And this is why you need me. To kill them all. I will do to them what I did to baby Nick."

"Baby… ah, the Tremere. I heard about your ritual."

"It's not mine, it's from the Tremere spell book. I also found a ritual that makes a certain part of the male body quite large. Why would someone like us need that, I mean… we don't really, you know, make whoopee."

"That's your problem? A Satanic cult is on the loose and marking children to bring Hell on earth like you said and your problem is some Tremere's ritual to engorge cock?"

"Uh, if you put it like that… Do you think they make money from it? Sell some thaumaturgical potion and pass it as penis enlargement cream? Why didn't I think of that…?"

"Never mind that. How efficient is the ritual?"

"It kills all the childer and the ghouls of the vampire whose ashes we use."

"Shit. We can't take them all with that. Follow me but from a distance. If shit hits the fan, you join me."

"Let's hope the poop will not hit the fan. It would smell awfully bad in that room."

Gratiano jumped from the top of the Colosseum and used his supernatural speed to travel the city. His mind drifted away, in the realm of memories:

 **New Orleans, Louisiana, Confederate States of America, 1863**

The slave fell down, brought on the brink of death by Gratiano.

"Sir, with the war and all that, I am sorry I couldn't accommodate you with a better dinner. Especially after spending so many months at sea. Honestly, it surprises me how do you manage to not get captured by the northerners."

Gratiano smiled:

"No need to apologize. I understand. Well, call it the luck of the sailor. Those like me love the sea and the sea loves us back. Anyway, let's get down to business."

"Of course, sir."

The man led Gratiano through his mansion to a room where a young woman sat in a bed covered in satin sheets. She was feverish and delirious. The Italian said:

"What's with her?"

"It's the God's doing, sir."

"What?"

"The God. The true God! That was the price I had to pay for all this. A large plantation, slaves, more gold than you can possibly imagine."

Gratiano used Auspex to see the girl's aura and then he grabbed her father's throat with his right arm:

"You sold your daughter's soul to the devil?"

"Nay, sir. The god ain't the devil. It's just misunderstood, that's all."

Gratiano immediately stuck his thumbs in the man's eyes so deep that his claws split his head in two. He died immediately. After that, he proceeded to kill everyone in the house whose auras bore the mark of Hell. He then broke the girl's neck, saying:

"You are not human anymore, child. Achieve peace."

 **Rome, Italy, present time**

Gratiano entered a small chapel somewhere close to the Vatican. A priest there approached the Cainite and spoke to him in Italian:

"Archbishop."

"Where is Montoya?"

"The Cardinal is praying."

"Praying… I wonder to whom. If you value your life, ghoul, I suggest you get the hell away from here or else you will share your master's fate."

"You can't mean that, Lord Gratiano!"

"I know, I know. He blood-bonded you, you love him to high heavens, you think he is God on earth. But trust me on this one. Go away. Find another Lasombra to drink from."

The ghoul tried to use a crucifix to stake Gratiano but the Methuselah beheaded him immediately. The Lasombra then used Auspex to see where Montoya was and he was in the basement. The former Archbishop of the Sabbat descended the staircase and saw Montoya performing a demonic ritual using a human heart taken from a woman who was lying naked and dead nearby.

"That's fucking rich. Upstairs, all crosses and angels. Downstairs, pentagrams and cheap ass gore porn."

Cardinal Montoya turned around and froze when he saw Gratiano the Veronese.

"Lord Gratiano, it's not what it looks like."

"Christ, you sound like those fucking gals from telenovelas. _Mi amor, esto no es lo que parece_."

"What?"

"Spanish. Read a fucking book. Or better yet just die."

Gratiano turned into a living shadow and enveloped the cardinal who died immediately, throat slit from ear to ear. The Lasombra returned to his vampire form and said:

"Nissiku, I told you to stay the fuck away until you were required."

"You told me to join you when the excrements hit the fan. Well, there is not a fan here but there are a lot of excrements in the room."

Gratiano looked around and indeed, the room was full of human feces, probably produced by the cardinal's victims. The Italian then checked the soles of his shoes and said:

"Fuck. I just bought them."

"Your vanity is incredible."

"My vanity is as incredible as your fashion sense is wrong. Look around this room for a star shaped stone."

The Malkavian then took out a small stone tablet shaped in the form of a start from his pocket and showed it to his fellow Methuselah:

"This one?"

"Where did you get it?"

"It was in this man's pocket. I took it while I was slitting his throat. Pardon me for asking, what are you going to do with it?"

"This is a stone made from a black rock found only on the bottom of the ocean. It's called a hellstone by the infernalists. It allows me to detect those who are tainted by demons."

"That's swell."

The two fourth generation vampires left the basement of the church. Above ground, however, they were met by three individuals, two men and one woman. The woman said:

"Gratiano de Veronese, for your crimes against the Camarilla and the Kindred society, I sentence you to die."

"Wait, what?"

"Your name has been added to the Red List. Top of the Red List, alongside your soul-sucking master and his mad brother."

The Clever Prince laughed:

"Well, that's three guys. You added three men on the top of the list. So, they are the first place, right? And the following one is the fourth, right?"

The woman asked:

"Who are you?"

One of her partners said:

"An accomplice of Gratiano, for sure."

"Yes, caught. I am an accomplice of Gratiano. He and I, we destroyed an infernalist right in the basement of this religious establishment."

"Liar. This was the haven of Cardinal Montoya, a…"

"Lasombra _antitribu_ , I know. One who is also a patron of the Angellis Ater, a sect of Satan worshippers, incredibly dangerous. See the irony? Guys worship the devil right in the bosom of the Catholic Church."

"Go to the basement if you don't believe us. But I wouldn't do that if I were you. It's full of excrement."

"Or better yet, why don't you just die here and now?"

Gratiano took out the hellstone which was vibrating.

"Since when do Alastors worship the devil?"

The three vampires attacked the two Methuselahs with swords. The battle was over in moments, all three of them turning into ashes after Gratiano and Nissiku decapitated them.

"Those guys were Camarilla."

"Indeed. It seems this awful infection is starting to affect them too."

"The hellstone helps us but we can't use it on each vampire in the world. We need to find a way to amplify its detection range."

"Oh, but that's easy."

"How?"

"My people could help. We integrate this little stone in our Cobweb. Its energies will allow us to pinpoint exactly when a demonic vampire interacts with us. It's like a little radio in our heads: ring-ring, demon in front of you."

Gratiano didn't like having Malkavian influences in his head but he relented. He gave the stone to Nissiku and said:

"Leave then for Vancouver. I have other things to do here."

"More killing?"

"I hope not. But if it comes to that…"

The Clever Prince disappeared.

 **Vatican, the following day**

The Italian Methuselah approached the confessional while arranging his suit and his tie. The last time he entered such room was when he was human and his confession was heard by the Pope himself. Gratiano opened the door and entered. Beyond the dividing wall, the old man listened. The Lasombra said in Italian:

"In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit… my last confession was… years ago. Many years ago."

"Do not fear, child. There is always time for reconciliation between you and God."

Gratiano smiled at the irony of being called a child. Compared to the Pope, his physical aspect was younger, yes. His black hair and beard, his face which lacked wrinkles, at least according to the last painting of himself, were far more appealing than the old man's but their age was nowhere near equal. Gratiano continued:

"Holy Father, once I… was a priest. Yet my life took a very dark turn."

"What happened? Were you excommunicated?"

"I… stopped being human."

Gratiano took out a small pocket mirror and put it in front of the screen between the two, showing the horrified pope the fact that in the mirror, there was only one of them in that confessional.

"Mother of God. You are one of them!"

"You know about us? Ah, of course you do. Aren't the hunters of the Catholic Church always after us, killing us with your name on your lips?"

"You are an abomination in front of God."

"Yes, I am. But there are others who are greater abominations than me. Let me impart you a secret from our society: we hate demons. We hate them with a passion. And we hunt and kill those of us who congregate with them. This is why, hours ago, I killed Cardinal Montoya. He was a vampire infernalist. That's our term for demon worshipper."

"What? You killed Cardinal Montoya? He was… a friend not a…"

"A friend that only came to nighttime services and ceremonies. A friend that killed young women and tore out their hearts. A friend that was a Cainite, like me."

"I don't believe you."

"Believe or not believe, it doesn't matter for me. I came here just to warn you. Dark creatures we might be but when infernalists threaten our society, we hunt them down without mercy. I clean my house, you clean yours. If you are inclined to do so, of course."

"If there is… a demonic influence here, at the heart of Christianity, I will try my best to expunge it. But you committed murder and that is a capital sin."

"As is raping young boys but you didn't seem inclined to solve that problem. It's hard to take out the trash from your house, to show the world the mess but… if you consider yourself truly a Father, you will protect your children."

Gratiano left without saying anything else. He wondered if he made a mistake. Outside the Vatican, a statue of Jesus loomed above the Cainite. The Lasombra sighed and went on his way.

 **Paris, France, two days later**

" _The world is on the brink of collapse. That volcanic eruption in the Northern Atlantic was caused by a nuclear warhead! Chemical attacks in Chicago! The whispers of doom and gloom! What is happening? An epidemic in Vancouver! I tell you, people, the end is near. Repent while you have time._ "

Malkav switched off the TV, laughing:

"Only if he knew."

"The first two were caused by your childe, brother, but the third one was caused by all of us. Many of our kind flocked to Vancouver and now, they are hungry."

"They only take what is needed."

"Not enough not to cause damage. People are tired without explanation, lacking vitality. We need to divide our forces in that city all over the world because if they continue at this pace, they will destroy Vancouver."

"If we break my progeny's circle of concentration, we will lose our main detection tool. The Lasombra arranged for blood to be transported by sea to Vancouver. The problem will be solved in a matter of weeks."

"I hope so. The world is going mad, brother. Did you know that Gratiano openly went to the Pope, the leader of the Catholic Church itself and announced himself as a vampire?"

"What of it? Popes always knew about us. Hell, a quarter of the College is associated with our kind somehow. Some are ghouls, others have secret sons and daughters which are ghouls and some of them are even candidates for Embraces by those… God-fearing clans."

"But is it right, Malkav? To be influencing the Church? To manipulate the word of God as we see fit?"

"Of course it is. It's a business. Just as we infiltrate governments and armies, we infiltrate churches as well."

Gratiano entered the conference room. Malkav said:

"Ah, we were just talking about you."

"I hope the discussion was pleasant."

Saulot then said to his ally:

"Why did go to the Pope and tell him what you are?"

"To show him how big our Cainite dicks are. A vampire coming into the Pope's confessional at noon! That should put the fear of God in those damned hunters. Also, while we hunt the supernatural elements in this demonic conspiracy, he must clean up the mortal ones."

"Do you think he will be let to do so? He will be assassinated, Gratiano."

"He is protected by my own childe. Sebastian is masquerading as a Swiss Guard."

"Do you have a childe?"

"Yes, of course I have. Sebastian. A bit of an uptight prick but very capable and very loyal. See, after my two childer, Joel and Marinus, died during the Anarch Revolt, I needed another one to pass my… wisdom to. So, I scoured the earth for centuries until I found Sebastian. He was a, let's call him an enfant terrible. His father wanted to marry him to a Spanish princess yet he wanted to go to the New World. So, he poisoned his father before the wedding could take place. I needed to have that one as my childe."

"You took as a childe one who poisoned his father. Interesting."

"Laugh all you want, madman, but I trust Sebastian. He will keep the pope alive and well. And on the path I envisioned for him."

"If he's capable, then there is nothing more to discuss about this."

A young vampire entered the room where the Antediluvians and the Methuselah talked:

"My lords, two Cainites from America want an audience."

"Let them in."

A man with white beard and a punk-looking woman entered the chamber. The man was clearly uncomfortable. The woman introduced herself:

"Gentlemen, my name is Tyler, childe of Robin and my fellow Brujah here is…"

"I don't need your introductions, diablerist. I am Critias, childe of Menele. We need to talk."


	18. The Broken Mirror

**Paris, France**

"Can I get you anything, Critias? I'm sorry, but we're out of Greek wine. Would you care for some cocoa instead?"

Critias frowned at Gratiano and said:

"After a long flight accompanied by this… woman, I expected you to be more mature."

Tyler laughed:

"You angered the old man with just one sentence. I'm starting to like you."

"You don't have a right to _like_ things, diablerist."

Saulot said:

"Enough arguing! You two came here with a reason and I want to hear that reason before I can help you with whatever you wish to accomplish."

Critias coughed and turned his eyes towards Malkav:

"After your childe's display of prowess against Primogen Antonescu, as you probably know, he used a ritual that was supposed to kill every descendant one had, provided that Kindred's ashes is available. When Nissiku used it, he could only kill Antonescu's childer and ghouls, not the entire line that descended from him."

"The ritual is flawed."

"Flawed but the very existence of this ritual is problematic. What if the Tremere perfect it? They could subdue and kill Methuselahs and extinguish entire lines of progeny with it. This is a risk we cannot take."

Gratiano said:

"First of all, we are not Kindred. We are Cainites, we are vampires. You're not Camarilla anymore so use the proper terminology. Secondly, the ritual is very concerning _if_ they manage to kill a Methuselah. You didn't fight ur-Shulgi. We did. And he was one hell of an opponent. Each of us fourth generation Cainites are."

"I am still Camarilla."

"Are you? Speaking with us right in the Brotherhood's haven implies that you're not Camarilla anymore."

Tyler said:

"Fuck the Camarilla. The old man doesn't want to acknowledge it or he puts it in flowery terms but he's scared shitless of the Tremere, especially after that ritual of theirs. I admit, I am scared. This is why I want to be with you, guys."

Saulot said:

"Your fellow Brujah called you a diablerist."

"Yeah… I might have… drank from his childe, you know? But I was young and foolish. I don't do that anymore."

"Liar. Even now she plans to diablerize me."

"I don't want your putrid, moldy blood."

"She'd be a fool not to plan this, Critias. Every vampire must find ways to improve their lot in life."

Saulot frowned:

"Diablerie is not the answer."

Critias replied:

"No, it is not. Diplomacy it's an answer. This is why I decided to put my feud with Tyler on hold. I don't like her, she doesn't like me but facing extermination, one must get himself in bed with the devil if that means survival."

The Italian Methuselah said:

"Let's hope they are not literal devils because we have this huge infernalist problem on our hands so…"

"I was talking metaphorically."

"Let's hope so. Not that I want to insult you, Critias, but your clan aren't that innocent when it comes to infernalism."

The Brujah ancient was incensed:

"What are you implying, Lasombra?"

"Guys, guys, chill! Here's the thing, Saulot. Give us the surviving in the sun thing and we will join you."

"I do not give this gift lightly. You would have to prove your loyalty first, to see if you deserve it."

"Fine, perfect. Tell me who to kill."

"The Brotherhood is more than an assassin organization. We seek peace and understanding amongst ourselves and with humans. Because without them, we can't really exist."

"Yeah. Drinking rat blood sucks."

"Not just because of the blood. Look at the world we live in now: the progress, the science, the technology, everything was made by humans. They are the roaring engine of the planet and without them, everything is lost."

"I know that."

"You know that, but do you really believe like we do?"

"I do, I truly do."

Critias scoffed:

"She only cares about taking more and more power for herself. If you give Tyler this power, she will destroy me immediately… unless you give it to me too. That will deter her from trying to kill me."

"See this old fool, Saulot? Already trying to get the upper hand. Critias doesn't care for your goals, nor your peaceful ways. He only cares about Carthage."

"Carthage was perfect, for its time. It was the realization of a dream. Exactly what you wish to accomplish, Antediluvian. Peaceful coexistence between us and the humans. We can't change the world but they can. As you said earlier, they are the roaring engine of the world. And we will be the fuel that helps this engine work. What I propose is a new form of Carthage, one that embraces modern values and provides the people means to develop themselves."

Saulot was intrigued:

"Carthage isn't the best example for comparison with what I envision, Critias. Do not forget what happened with it. But please, tell me, how would us be the fuel to such a civilization?"

"People must choose the direction the world goes to, but what if they choose wrong? Not even a century ago, Germans chose wrong and plunged the world into chaos. We need to make sure things like this will not happen anymore."

Gratiano said:

"If the humans choose wrong it's because they are stupid. They will elect leaders that will stimulate their baser instincts and beyond that, they wouldn't care. Unless you have a way to miraculously raise the planetary IQ by 20 to 30 points, your wishes will not come true."

"And this is why we will provide guidance. For thousands of years, we influenced the world subtly, but it is not enough. We need to be more active."

"How so?"

"The virtues of democracy are perfect for our world. Give people the right to vote and they will choose what's best for them. But… do they really know what's best for them? They need someone to teach them how to find out what's good for them. Soon, my sire will rise and he shall help us in this endeavor."

Gratiano laughed:

"And who will teach them? You, the Brujah?"

Tyler added:

"See, Antediluvians? Not even three sentences in and he already wants to steal the free will of the world."

Saulot smiled and said:

"And you, Tyler? What would you do?"

"Me? People are happy when they are free. I'd say… fuck nations. Fuck borders. Fuck flags. Fuck everything that divides us: religions, customs, wealth, power."

Gratiano laughed:

"That's nice… That's some huge hippie John Lennon-Yoko Ono New Age shit, right? There are almost 7 billion people on this earth, divided in hundreds of nations. What do you think it will happen, Tyler? The terrorists who brought down the towers will join hands with the Jews and declare eternal love and friendship? Maybe they'll dance a little jig together, right? Or the Scottish and the English. Or the Turks and the Greeks…"

"If they don't like it, they can go fuck themselves."

"Fuck flags, fuck countries, fuck religion, fuck me, fuck you, fuck them… a lot of fucks, don't you think? Too many fucks. But then again, that's what you Brujah people are all about: fuck. Fuck gods, fuck kings, fuck masters but when it comes to truly do the right thing… you don't give a fuck."

"Do not dare compare me with Tyler. She and her Iconoclast brood have no respect for anything."

"Yeah, yeah!"

"It's a beautiful dream but one which is not very realistic. People always tried to… belong to something. If you take that away from them, they will simply find other things to cling to. Humans are shaped by their environment, the place they were born, the family they were born into… if you take that essence from them, you take out a huge chunk of their very nature."

"Please, Antediluvian, do not try to talk sense into this pathetic creature. She is beyond help."

Gratiano said:

"As are you. You want to turn this world into Carthage. What, do you want it to be filled with Baali?"

Critias got up from the chair and said:

"No Baali will destroy my Carthage."

"Hey, where are you going?"

"I see there is no understanding here of what I try to accomplish. I only ask to not consider me an enemy."

Critias left, leaving Tyler in the presence of the three leaders of the Brotherhood. The Mad Antediluvian, who was silent during the discussion, said:

"The flames of rebellion are burning hot and high inside you, childe. If you can control them enough not to burn you completely, there may be a place with us for you still."

"Really? It will be great!"

"I will expect you to act like a leader and not a petulant child. During our battle with ur-Shulgi, we lost a fellow by the name of Gabriel. He was with the Order of Cascadia, a group of New World vampires that are sympathetic to our Brotherhood. You will take over as the new leader of that group. Your job will be simple and perfectly suited for you: spread the word of our deeds to every Cainite you meet in your travels. Use your Brujah charm. Rouse them and they will join."

"So… I get to see the sun?"

Saulot said:

"You will see what we need you to see, at least until we know we can trust you. If you betray us, you will die."

"Fine by me!"

"You will be briefed more by a Malkavian on your way out of the hotel. Welcome to the Brotherhood, Tyler."

Tyler smiled and left the room. Malkav said to his brother:

"Menele will rise. It's a good thing."

"I hope so."

"Brother, if you'll excuse us, me and Gratiano will leave you for a while."

"Sure."

The two vampires descended to the hotel's basement. In there, Malkav said:

"Tell me, have you ever loved anything more than life itself? More than your desire for power?"

"I did once, when alive. It was this girl… I can't even remember her name. Her father was the castle's blacksmith. I wanted to run off with her and marry her but… father found out and banished them. _You will be given to God_ , he said. Then, after Lasombra turned me, I sought her. I found out she married a soldier and had two children with him. She died giving birth to the second one."

"Then you will understand that in order to save what you love, you are capable of doing anything."

"I suppose so. Though since then, I didn't really have much experience with love. See, when I took that girl's virtue under that willow tree, I thought it's the most beautiful sensation in the world. That until I became Cainite and had my few drink."

The two Cainites reached a room where Johann stood sleeping on a bed, dressed in red. Malkav said:

"I spent my days and nights here, caring for him. Giving him water… taking care of the mess his human body produces…"

"That's creepy."

"It is not creepy. If I would have let the mess pile up, it would create an environment for infections to set. I can't allow that."

"So, how can I help?"

"First, by giving me what I asked you to bring here."

"It's in my room. I will bring it now."

After a while, Gratiano returned with a box. The madman said:

"Open it."

The Methuselah cracked open the box and revealed a violin. He then said:

"This is a Dalla Corna from 1531. It belonged to an Italian descendant of yours who used his music to control minds."

"It's perfect, just like you promised. Oh, sweet Johann, when you'll rise, you'll sing to me, right?"

"What? Do you plan to give the kid the Blood?"

"Oh, yes. And after that… all secrets shall be revealed."

"Um, I'd rather not be a part of this, you know? I already angered Saulot once and he almost made me Italian fries. Siring the boy will anger your brother."

"Yes, but it's irrelevant. He will thank me later. You will help me, Gratiano, if you want me to help you."

"How would you help me?"

"We'll kill your Father together. How about that? Do you think I don't know how he tries to manipulate you? Do you want to get rid of him?"

"I do, of course I do."

"Then help me."

"How?"

"You will know at the right time."

Malkav then approached the sleeping boy and said to him:

"You are the most beautiful gift anyone gave me. Not even the sun is as precious for me as are you."

The Antediluvian then used his index finger of his pale right hand to touch the boy's neck. Gratiano was a bit uncomfortable with that. Malkav said:

"Even feeling his blood flowing through him gives me more clarity than my brother's Obeah."

"Oh, well… don't do drugs, kids. Just touch a near-dead kid's neck and you'll get your high immediately."

Malkav ignored Gratiano's jape. He then said:

"Awake into the light."

He then plunged his fangs into the boy's neck. Gratiano suddenly felt horrible, like his chest was on fire. He ripped his shirt exposing his almost milky white skin. With each drop of blood Malkav was drinking, Gratiano felt closer and closer drawn to the Beast.

"I… will not let you…"

He fought with his all might and he prevailed. The monster inside him slept again. Gratiano said to Malkav:

"Don't do that…"

Malkav smiled and opened his vein, dripping his vitae in Johann's mouth. The boy's eyes opened and they were as bright as the sun. Gratiano was horrified. Malkav then touched the boy's head and said:

"Reach out!"

He then handed the boy the violin. One chord, that's all it took. Every mirror in the room broke. Gratiano said:

"What have you done, madman?"

 **Northern Canada**

The deer was fast but she was faster. She bared her teeth and sank them deep within the animal. After she fed, she could see her nakedness in the icy lake. She was content. Warm blood to feed her and the clear skies to give her peace. The lake then shattered and her head was on fire.

 **Alamut, somewhere in Syria**

Haqim fell down on his knees, his arms clawing at his forehead:

"Argh!"

His fellow Assamites were hurting too, some of them struck by pieces of the shattered mirror. After he regained his composure, the Antediluvian looked at the broken mirror in front of him and said:

"What have you done?"

 **Somewhere in Russia**

The monstrous woman looked at the boy in front of her and said towards the sky:

"You can't trick me with something as obvious as this."

Suddenly, both of them were grabbing their heads, screaming in pain. The stream nearby expulsed its entire water over the land.

 **Somewhere in Northern Africa**

The earthquake shattered the ground. The Mediterranean's waters washed it clean. A hand emerged from the ground. And then, another. He rose, looking at the sky above him. Another emerged after him. The first man couldn't walk so he dragged on his fours until he reached the sea. He looked in the water and cried tears of blood.

 **Berlin, Germany**

The Ventrue Methuselah punched the lid of his coffin so hard that it ripped it in two. His head was on fire.

 **Alexandria, Egypt**

"We are now free, children! We are free to take this Earth and reshape it! When the Tremere will be destroyed, we will rule the world!"

The gathering of vampires applauded the Antediluvian. Set then said:

"We'll show those infernalists what true corruption is all about!"

The glass statues suddenly cracked and the entire congregation started to scream in pain. Even the powerful Sutekh was hurt:

"Ah… dear brother!"

 **Paris, France**

Saulot felt a deathlike cold in his chest. He opened his third eye and immediately descended to the basement. What he saw, horrified him.

"Brother… What is the meaning of this?"

"I did it, brother! I saved Johann!"

"You saved him? He's cursed, beyond any redemption."

"Cursed? Oh, no, he is blessed, brother. He now knows everything!"

Saulot approached the boy whose hands were tugging at the violin. He said:

"Johann, can you hear me?"

The boy then closed his eyes and struck another chord. Gratiano cried:

"STOP IT! FOR FUCK'S SAKE, STOP IT!"

Even Saulot felt that one as hard as Gratiano. He was on his knees. Malkav then said, smiling:

"Gratiano, your Angellis Ater are hiding in Milan, Italy. You and my childer Tesus and Nissiku will go and kill them all."

Gratiano regained his composure and said:

"How do you know that?"

"I didn't. He knew. Didn't you hear it?"

"I heard the Beast rampaging through my fucking body."

"Ah… it seems it's still work in progress. Those of you who are not my blood… you can't interpret the omens, not yet."

"What have you done to the boy?"

"He now embodies the entire Tapestry. He knows everything."

"You turned him into a vessel for the Cobweb?"

"It was the only way to keep him alive."

"He's not alive!"

"He is more than alive. He is now akin to a god!"

The boy then dropped the violin and started to speak:

"The dark pair arose tonight. They already claimed the lives of a thousand men, women and children. Their souls are lost and their final screams echo throughout the other realm."

"Tell me more, beloved child."

"She fights for her unlife now. The Grandmother. She fights for her children, grandsons and all those of her blood. Her father comes after her."

"MORE!"

"Malkav, leave the boy alone!"

"The serpent plans to slither his way into the bosom of the world. His bite will poison the very waters of life."

"I knew it."

"She comes, the mother of beasts. Her thirst is unimaginable and she will drink until she is fed."

"MORE! MORE!"

Johann then looked at Gratiano:

"You will prevail."

Gratiano was shocked. He fell on his knees, his hands shaking.


	19. The Dream of Lies

**Paris, France**

The Egyptian Antediluvian tried to touch the boy's cheek but Malkav stopped him:

"He is not yours to touch."

"Give me just a sip of him, brother, and I will give you the world."

"I don't want the world."

"Then what do you want?"

"What I want you can't give me, brother."

Saulot appeared before his two brothers and said:

"A traitor and a monster. My two brothers. How I loathe to look upon your faces! Do you enjoy the boy's suffering?"

Set laughed:

"How sanctimonious of you! Talking to us like you don't crave his blood. The aroma, the knowledge in it, the pain… it drives me mad, brother. I want it!"

"Set, do not make me fight you. Leave Johann in peace."

"Oh, but do you wonder, Saulot, if Johann wants to be left in peace?"

The Serpent then turned to the child:

"Tell me, little one, do you want to be left in peace?"

The boy's eyes were fixated upon the Antediluvian and suddenly, he turned his gaze upon the emaciated figure of Lazarus. The Cappadocian said:

"Get away from the child or I will kill you."

"You'll kill me. You! The bloody Faithless Son, a grave robber and a traitor. Come on, Lazarus, kill me! I dare you!"

"You are a worthless trash, Sutekh. One that doesn't deserve any attention whatsoever."

Johann then said:

"The dead one will kill the Serpent but he'll lose everything."

For the first time, Set's grin evaporated. He was now serious and said:

"Are you saying this thief will kill me?"

Set then roused his inner Beast so much that it took form of a snake-like aura that appeared around him. His Celerity was so strong that he almost immediately grabbed the boy. Johann then said:

"The coming of the dead will bring forth a thousand years of blood. Blood will rain from the skies, blood will fill the lakes and the rivers, the oceans will be made of blood. He who is dead will kill them all!"

Saulot said:

"Set, unhand the boy now!"

Set trembled. He gave the child to Saulot.

"What dead? Lazarus? Oh no, no, he's not strong enough…"

"From the black wombs of the earth, the dead will be born and he will bring sorrow and blood."

Set turned his head towards his brothers:

"I'm telling you, he's freaking me out. What dead? Who's that dead?"

 **Milan, Italy**

"What the fuck was that?"

"Why don't you ask your fucking sire what the fuck was that, ah? You have a new baby brother, Tesus, congrats!"

Gratiano was angry. Ever since Malkav Embraced Johann, the world felt different. He felt eyes watching him from every shadow but he found a bit of comfort in Johann's words. He will prevail. Nissiku appeared, dressed in a white pajama, with his arms trapped in a straitjacket.

"Sorry I'm late."

"Where the fuck were you?"

"I was playing charades with the patients in the loony bin. This guy, Marco, is so damn good."

"Enough with that. Gratiano, where are these fucking guys?"

"Their haven is underneath this church, right here."

He pointed at the map. Tesus nodded while Nissiku said:

"Friends, did you feel anything wrong these last couple of days? Some kind of… something strange?"

"Yeah, it's because Father Embraced that kid he and Saulot kept."

"Really? Hmm… this is why I'm hearing Beethoven whenever I use Dementation?"

"Beethoven? I hear bloody Mozart."

"Really? Can we switch? Please, please, please!"

"No!"

"Then… I'm not talking to you anymore!"

Gratiano sighed. One Malkavian was enough but two? He said:

"Enough with this. Let's go."

"Aye, aye, cap'n!"

Half an hour later, Gratiano and his Malkavian cohorts reached a sewer. Inside, the Lasombra said:

"Ten minutes of walking towards north and we'll be right beneath their haven."

They started to go north. Gratiano then asked Nissiku:

"What's with the straitjacket?"

"I told you, I was playing charades with some people in the loony bin."

"And the doctors noticed you for the madman you are and tried to keep you there, right?"

"Gratiano, please tell my brother I do not want to talk to him."

"Tell him yourself."

"I refuse."

"Then shut up."

"That's right, Nissiku, shut up."

A few minutes later, the Clever Prince said:

"Quiz time! Do you know who Troile is?"

"The fucking guy who's now Antediluvian for Clan Brujah, right?"

"Gratiano, tell my brother he is correct."

The Lasombra Methuselah sighed. Then, Nissiku said:

"He's back!"

"What?"

"He's back!"

Gratiano scoffed:

"Great, another fucking monster."

"And this one is bad, really bad! So, hear me out: this guy was so corrupted that they sealed him in the ground and poured salt over him just to keep him there. Now, father sires little Johann and Troile gets out. Guess what he did!"

Tesus said:

"He slaughtered a village. A thousand people."

"Why do you always have to mess up with my surprises?"

"Hah, you spoke to me!"

"I didn't!"

"Yes, you did!"

"Enough, you two! We've arrived."

Above the three, a trapdoor stood between them and the infernalists. Nissiku said:

"I offer myself as the bait."

"How would you fight with your arms trapped?"

"I have legs, you know?"

Nissiku disappeared. He manifested above, in the basement of the church.

"THIS SONG IS A TRAIN SONG, IT'S A SONG ABOUT A TRAIN… THIS SONG IS A TRAIN SONG WHERE THE ENGINEER IS UNCLE SAAAAAM!"

The Cainites below heard screams and gunshots. The two emerged from the trapdoor only to see Nissiku shooting his revolver… with his foot.

"For fuck's sake…"

 **Somewhere in Tunisia**

The old woman fell down, drained of her blood. Her granddaughter followed soon. The vampire then finished the father.

"P… please… Don't kill me."

The man didn't answer. He was thin and short with short hair and wearing a dark red cloak over his bare chest. He had black cloth pants and was barefooted. He approached the woman and touched her breast. He then spoke, his voice coarse as sandpaper:

"You gave birth, right? Your breast is full…"

He then licked her nipple with his dried tongue. She cried but she couldn't move. He bit her, the mixture of blood and milk invading his mouth. Soon after, he killed her too. His companion entered the room and brought him another man, who was drained immediately.

"Soon…"

 **Paris, France**

"The child needs rest. The dawn will soon be upon us."

"Make him survive the sun! I want to hear who that dead guy is!"

"It's just the rambling of the Clan of the Moon, nothing else."

"I never underestimated a Malkavian's insight."

Set then turned his head towards Johann:

"Tell me his name!"

Malkav then said:

"Stop shouting! You're bothering him! He is so sensitive…"

"Listen, you little bastard, if you don't tell me who that guy is, I am going straight for Austria, find your former family and kill them all!"

Johann didn't react. Set was angry:

"I will tear you piece by piece until there is nothing left of you."

Set suddenly started shaking. Malkav said:

"If you insult my precious baby again, I will end you and your line!"

Malkav then released the psychic hold. Set said, this time without shouting:

"Make him tell me who he was talking about."

The mad Antediluvian approached his newest childe and embraced him in an almost parental fashion:

"Baby, tell uncle Set what he wishes to know and I swear to you he will leave you alone."

Lazarus smirked while Set was disgusted by himself being called "uncle". Saulot's face was implacable. The boy continued to look at Malkav without saying anything.

"Please, little one? Beloved boy? My little artist?"

A portal of the Abyss opened in the basement of the hotel and Gratiano, Tesus and Nissiku appeared from it. They were dirty and their clothes were full of blood. Gratiano said:

"Stop with the pedo talk, madman. It's fucking creepy."

Nissiku then gasped and said:

"Is he… Johann? He's so pretty! Hello, Johann, I am Nissiku!"

The mad Methuselah removed his straitjacket and approached his little brother. He hugged him and said:

"You will be my new best friend!"

The boy nodded and smiled. Set said:

"Wait, what? Nissiku, ask the boy who is the dead man!"

"What dead man?"

"Just ask him, asshole!"

"Fine, fine. Johann, who is the dead man Sutekh is asking about?"

"He is born out of a woman but he is not a babe. He is one of you. One of… us. He is dead to this world but soon, he will return."

"Is he an Antediluvian?"

"No."

The boy then closed his eyes. Nissiku picked him up in his arms and put him onto the bed. Saulot said:

"Here is your answer, brother. Now leave us."

Set hissed and left. Malkav said:

"My childer, I am so happy to see you!"

Tesus sneered:

"So happy that you almost destroyed us all with Embracing this one."

Nissiku said:

"Father wanted only to prepare us a surprise. And I have to admit, it's a beautiful surprise. Hey, GDV, have you seen the baby?"

Gratiano looked at the boy with fear and said:

"All too well…"

Saulot then said:

"The boy had a very rough night. Let him in peace. You too, Malkav."

"I can't let him, I…"

Saulot roused his internal energies to such a degree that even the mad Malkav relented. All vampires left the room in which Johann was staying. Upstairs, they reconvened. Tesus said:

"Father, I accomplished my mission. Give me my childe back and let me go on my way."

"Your childe?"

"Yes, the one you held hostage by you. Give him to me and I'll be gone."

"I'm afraid… your childe is gone."

"What do you mean he's gone?"

"He left. After I Embraced my beloved child, he was gone."

"Wasn't he staked?"

"He was but my ritual had many unforeseen consequences."

"You! You fucking…"

Malkav slapped his child. Tesus then left, saying:

"I'll find my childe and then we'll leave. Don't try to find me ever again or else, I'll have my revenge and I'll kill Beckett!"

After Tesus left, Saulot told his brother:

"This is the bed you made yourself, now sleep in it."

In his room, Johann took his violin in his hands and started playing. Upstairs, both Malkav and Nissiku were in a state of exaltation, their minds freed and at peace. Saulot touched his brother's forehead and was horrified: he saw a large creature, resembling a dragon, with horns, fangs and claws approaching a city, one that the Antediluvian wasn't able to recognize. He returned and said:

"Did you see that?"

Both Malkav and his childe were completely disconnected, riding the wave of their own madness, exacerbated by Johann's song.

"What the hell… Alexander?"

Petaniqua appeared, looking even more distraught than before Saulot helped her. The Salubri said to her:

"Did the child's Embrace awakened you too?"

She nodded.

"I'm afraid my brother's folly cost his clan a lot."

The Antediluvian bathed Petaniqua in light again and she found her rest again, if only temporary.

Gratiano added:

"Anyway, I needed to talk to you about what happened. I didn't know what Malkav planned."

"I know you didn't. Gratiano, follow me."

Saulot and the Lasombra Methuselah entered another room. The Antediluvian said:

"I've seen a terrible creature approaching a city. Strangely enough though, as horrible as it looked, it wasn't evil. I didn't sense any bad intentions coming from it. We need to find out who or what it is. I can't trust Set with this, especially after his display today and I can't even bear to look at Malkav for what he has done. Besides, he is too busy floating in his own head. Would you come with me to find this being, Gratiano?"

"I will but… where do we start?"

"That's it, I don't know. I couldn't pinpoint what that city was."

"Is there any way for me to see this vision? Maybe I'll recognize the city. I travelled a lot during the modern nights."

"Of course, try."

Saulot touched Gratiano's forehead. After seeing the vision, the Lasombra said:

"That's Istanbul. Constantinople, as it was known in the old days."

"So, we shall travel there. What can you tell me about it?"

"Istanbul… is complicated. It is ruled by the Camarilla but the prince, a Ventrue, is nothing more than a puppet. The Toreador rule the city but they allow any Cainite of any clan to stay there provided they respect their laws."

"I understand. Tell me, what do you think that creature was?"

"At first, I thought it's a vozhd whose creator had an anime fetish but… I don't think it's that."

"Then what?"

"Only one way to find out. I'll book us tickets, unless you want to travel through portals?"

"The sooner we reach, the better, but if we materialize in the middle of the city, we'll breach their laws. Let's take the plane."

Gratiano nodded.


	20. The Angel of Death

**Istanbul, Turkey**

The Great Bazaar was bustling and the people hurried in every direction Saulot looked at each shop and each merchant with curiosity:

"I visited Constantinople once, a thousand years ago. But this place wasn't built then."

"This is the Great Bazaar. Its construction was begun in the 1450s."

"Oh… It looks incredible."

"Many vampires used to disguise themselves as shopkeepers and organize… nighttime shopping visits for several influential humans in town. This way, there kept themselves fed and their businesses afloat."

"I see… look at woman over there. Is she a weaver?"

"Yes, making a carpet I believe."

"Look at the colors, Gratiano! Amazing!"

"Yeah, it looks good but old, traditional stuff like that it's not for me."

"Why not?"

"Look at her shop: carpets, tapestries, weird fabrics… when I see things like that, I can only see regression, traditions that should die and times best forgotten."

"Why?"

"We live in the 21st century now. If I decorate my house with that crap, it's like I'm saying to all the hunters in the world: here, come in. I'm a fucking vampire. I like old, dusty, moldy stuff. Hell, I don't even have to tell you I'm a vampire. You'll realize by seeing the china."

"Gratiano, traditional art existed since my time. Don't tell me you never had Persian carpets."

"I did have, when they were popular. When they didn't expose me to hunters. Here's the thing: many hunters believe us Cainites are living in the past, hoarding ancient little statues and ancient little paintings and all that stuff. I'm not saying that it isn't true for some… those who fall to hunters. In Rio, one hunter found me, I don't know how. He was so surprised that I can use a laptop that didn't even react when I beheaded him."

"A… what?"

"A laptop. It's a computer, only portable. I have one in my bag. It's what Nosferatu use to hack cameras and find secrets."

"I understand."

"In Brazil, I live in an apartment block most of the time. My neighbors are all humans, really salt-of-the-earth kind of guys, decent, hardworking fellows. Of course, I have a penthouse near the beach but I prefer the apartment. It allows me to hide better."

"I hope you're not… feeding from your neighbors."

"Oh no, I wouldn't. Their blood tastes like beer, especially after some football match."

"You are such a snob. Like a Ventrue."

"Hey, they can't help themselves. I am a snob, yes, because I like being a snob. Because being a snob helped me survive for hundreds of years."

A few minutes later, Gratiano took out his pocket mirror and looked in it, arranging his tie. Saulot asked:

"What are you doing?"

"See the guy sitting on that bench near the coffee shop? That's a hunter. He was eyeing me since we've entered the Bazaar. Use Auspex on him to see he's suspicious."

"I believe you. Please, don't kill him."

"I won't, not here."

"It's daytime, how did he find out about you?"

"Well, it's not a secret any more than anyone associated with you can walk into the sun without burning so…"

"Let's leave this place."

Soon after, the two vampires left the Great Bazaar and were now in a park, sitting on a bench. A woman passed in front of them, holding a baby. She said in Turkish:

"Excuse me, do you know the time?"

"11:40."

"Thank you. Have a nice day!"

"You too."

Gratiano then said to Saulot:

"Look at this one. She's like what, 20? 22? Already having a baby."

"It's beautiful. She's making children as God intended."

"Did God tell you his intentions by mail or by SMS? If by mail, please give me his adress! I have so much to ask him!"

"Don't mock."

"I'm not mocking."

"Yes, you are. You were a man of God, Gratiano, now you're mocking Him."

"You're right, I was. Pretty hard to believe in God after you've become a Cainite, especially a Lasombra. But when I was human, it wasn't that much different. Human or Cainite, I still killed."

"Did you kill anyone as a human?"

"I did. You see, I was a pretty successful priest. Many considered me a future pope. I had the family connections for that, too. My father was a cousin of the Doge of Venice and related by marriage to the Duke of Naples. I had enough money to buy votes in the Conclave… I only had to wait to be created Cardinal and to get rid of the Pope to get my Holy See. However, Lasombra had other plans for me."

"What happened?"

"He set fire to my house, killing half my family. Kitchen accident my ass… then, he killed every political connection I had. Plague my ass… Then, the Church suddenly started to back my rival. That I couldn't bear. So, I sneaked into his house and killed him. When I left his mansion, Lasombra waited for me. He told me everything he has done to me. I was angry but then, he showed me what he could do. When you see that… suddenly religious power looks so mundane. So I got the Blood."

"And you damned yourself for eternity."

"I did. Just like she and her man damned her child for the rest of his life."

"Why would you believe that?"

"Human children are like us, you know? With differences, of course. They are not powerful, they drink milk not blood and… they can see the sun…"

Gratiano looked at the sun above, still uncomfortable after centuries of darkness.

"… but in the end, their existences are exactly like ours. Egotistical shits bring them into the world only to suffer. Just like we are Embraced. But instead of murder and betrayal, they are exposed to suffering, disease and heartbreak."

"You sound like you care about them?"

"I don't. Does the lion care about the worms slithering in the ground?"

"You are not a bad man, Gratiano. You are just… confused."

"I am not some kind of teenager with a mommy complex, you know? I know what I am and who I am."

Before Saulot could reply, a man appeared in front of them. He was human. He said:

"Gentlemen, welcome to Istanbul."

"And who are you?"

"I am Ahmet, a ghoul to our esteemed prince, Mustafa."

Gratiano smirked:

"Charmed. So, what do you want?"

"My master requires your presence tonight."

"Ah? Well, tell your master to f…"

Gratiano was interrupted by his Antediluvian companion:

"Tell the prince we accept. Where does he want to meet us?"

"At the Topkapi Palace. A guard will let you in. He knows about us. Again, welcome to Istanbul. Enjoy your stay."

The man bowed and left the park. Gratiano said:

"This city has eyes and ears on us ever since we got off plane."

"Absolutely."

"Why would you meet that pesky Ventrue?"

"We need the help of local vampires if we are to locate that creature."

The two Cainites left the park. Soon, they were walking past an internet café. Gratiano said to Saulot:

"Technology evolves, Antediluvian. Only a century ago, people were just discovering the wonders of electricity. Now, we have internet and instant communication anywhere in the world."

"It's marvelous. Also, it defeats your nihilism. You said in the park that children are born to suffering. They are now born in a better place than the one either one of us were. I was born ten thousand years ago, you know? People were living in hovels and huts made of clay. Anyone who lived past thirty were considered ancients."

"That was the shit of that age. This age has its own shit. War, famine, disease, like always. Do you think that internet and high-speed transportation changed man from the rotten creature it is to a saint? One evening, I went to the stadium in Rio. Brazil played against… fuck, I don't remember. There, if you don't like football, you are considered weird and peculiar and someone like us doesn't afford that luxury. So I went with my neighbors to the stadium, dressed in some stupid green and yellow shirt, avoiding all mirrors and water puddles."

Saulot chuckled:

"I can hardly imagine you wearing something like that."

"Go figure. Anyway, we were in the stands, my companions drunk and the other team scored. Now, this guy smacked his wife so hard that knocked out two teeth from her mouth. Just because she laughed at his favorite team."

"You can't judge an entire society for the misdeeds of a drunkard, Gratiano."

"Like him, there are countless others. You can't change them all, Antediluvian."

"Maybe. That doesn't mean I won't try."

That evening, Gratiano and Saulot were received in a beautiful room in the Topkapi Palace. The Lasombra whispered to the Salubri:

"Can you imagine how many sultans' asses polished that throne? And now, this turd sits on it…"

The prince of Istanbul, Mustafa, didn't look like a prince at all. Dressed in a plain suit, with unkempt hair and a thin mustache. He said:

"Welcome to Istanbul. I have to say, it's… very strange that two Kindred of such… magnitude visit our fair city."

"If you want diplomacy, you would not call me a Kindred. I am a Cainite and a vampire, like you and your cohorts are."

Gratiano looked at the prince and his bodyguards with disdain. He continued:

"You are vampires who are ashamed of being vampires. You spent your entire unlives in a boardroom, acting like preppies in some kind of New England college spewing Ivy League bullshit. You know nothing about the real life, hence you are shaking at the sight of Saulot and me."

"I can assure you, I am not trembling. In fact, if I were to be afraid of you, I wouldn't have let you enter the city."

"How? By having that hunter in the Bazaar kill us?"

The prince frowned:

"What hunter?"

Saulot said:

"A hunter in the Great Bazaar. He was eyeing me and Gratiano."

"How did you know it was a hunter?"

Gratiano laughed:

"I can make hunters immediately. Comes with the experience of having to kill countless of them."

"I see. Leave us, please."

"My prince, we…"

"It's an order."

The prince's bodyguards left the room, leaving the Ventrue alone with the Brotherhood leaders.

"Truth be told, the Camarilla is scared of you. Your rise, Saulot, brought much… disorder in our world. In my city too."

"What do you mean?"

"I know about the hunter. There are many of them in the city. All of them seeking the same thing…"

"Demons."

"Yes, demons."

"What a coincidence. We also seek a demon."

"We don't know if it's a demon."

"A being with horns, looking like a dragon? Something like that was sighted entering the sewers but none of my men dared enter it."

"So you want us to bathe in Turkish shit because your men didn't have the spine to do it themselves?"

"We… all are on edge."

"First, tell us everything you know about this demon talk. Then, we shall help you."

An hour later, Gratiano and Saulot reached a cemetery:

"I sensed a strange presence here. I will investigate"

"What about me?"

"I have something else for you."

"What?"

"Gratiano, what I'm going to ask you is terrible but… it has to be done. I want you to… dispose of the prince of Istanbul, Mustafa."

"Oh, gladly!"

"It saddens me that I have to do this, but we have an opportunity to gain a foothold here, at the gates of the Orient. And that Mustafa fellow is hardly Brotherhood material. Try not to kill him, if you can."

Gratiano smiled and left, leaving Saulot at the cemetery's gate. The Salubri suddenly felt something: dread. He entered the resting place and noticed a figure sitting near one of the tombstones. A woman, black of skin and black of eyes, with strange, demonic drawings on her face. When she saw Saulot, she screamed in an old language Saulot recognized:

"NO! GO AWAY! AWAY!"

White flashes of light emerged from her eyes and a demanding male voice from within her:

"BURN!"

The white light left her body and took the form of a young, blond and muscular man, more beautiful than any man Saulot had ever seen. That man said:

"I knew you would be drawn to this place. Your cleansing power is doing its intended work."

"You are…"

The light entered the woman's body again and started to excruciatingly transform her: her skin became white, her eyes became blue, even her womanly parts fused together to form male parts. She scratched her face, gouging one of her eyes out which regenerated. After the hellish moment was ended, a naked male stood before Saulot. The young man said:

"We need to talk, Antediluvian."

"I suppose we need… Beshter."

"I am not that man anymore, Antediluvian. I am Mi-ka-il, the Archangel. I am the bearer of the sword, I am the light of the heavens. I am the Father. I am the Dream."

"Michael."


	21. Father, Serpent, Demon

**Istanbul, Turkey**

That night was very cold but the heat generated by Michael's body raised the air's temperature. The Toreador Methuselah's face was bright as the sun and he wore a broad smile:

"Antediluvian, you can't imagine how grateful I am to you. The diablerist's willpower was waning but your presence gave it that final push over the cliff's edge. For that, I thank you."

"Michael, there is something you must know. I came to this city in search of a demon but seeing you back means… it was no demon."

"It was no demon, of course. It was my Holy Spirit, my Dracon."

"Dracon… Is he with you?"

"No, Antediluvian. He is not."

Michael approached Saulot and said:

"He heard my call, from wherever he was… He knew I was still here, still fighting. My beloved Holy Spirit…"

"The forces of evil are attacking us at every step."

"The forces of evil? You mean to say that **we** are attacking each other at every step. We are the evil, Antediluvian. But I will change that."

"How?"

"The Dream was the only oasis of peace those of our kind had. Now, it is time for a new Dream to be born, one that will not be destroyed by demons."

"This city is different than the one you lived in, Michael. Your Dream will fade in this place full of torment."

"True! This is why the Dream will be rebuild elsewhere."

"Where?"

"Not here."

"That's not an answer."

"But it's the only one you will get, Antediluvian. I do not know if I can trust you yet. But that could change, if you help me find the Dracon."

"That is my intention, too."

"Good. Let's go."

"Please… you can't go into the city naked."

Michael smiled and used Obfuscate to disappear. Saulot said:

"Do you have any idea where he is?"

" _I sense him_."

"Good."

 **Paris, France**

Malkav held a blood bag near Johann's mouth, begging his childe to drink from it:

"It's very tasty! Come on, drink!"

The boy closed his mouth, refusing the vitae. Malkav said again, pleading even more:

"It is good for you. Without it, you'll die. Come on, drink. Just a sip! Help me, corpse!"

Lazarus said:

"I am here to guard the boy, not to fulfill your father fetish. He'll drink when the Beast within him will go insane."

"He has no Beast within him. Just… light."

"Yes, and I am a little bee, flying from flower to flower."

"You are a fly feasting on corpses, Lazarus. Try yourself, my dear."

A pale and emaciated woman took the vitae bag with her bony hand and said to Malkav with a soothing but deranged voice:

"Maybe he prefers the bottle. Yes, the bottle!"

"Good idea! Fetch the bottle."

Nissku said:

"We have baby bottles here?"

Malkav replied:

"We don't?"

"Of course we don't. Hold on, father. Ah, here it is."

Nissiku took out a red baby bottle from the inside of his dark purple coat and gave it to the woman. She said:

"Thank you, Nissiku. You know, maybe he is wet. Wet babies don't drink blood."

Lazarus said:

"You aren't serious."

"Of course she's not. Sister, can't you see the boy is big? He has no need for diapers and all that."

"Ah, you're right."

Malkav replied:

"Beautiful child, do you want to see your brother Nissiku juggle with axes?"

"Yes, I am a good juggler, I have to say."

The boy did not answer. The Antediluvian and his other childer were desperate:

"Please, in the name of all that is holy, tell me: what do you want in exchange for a sip?"

Nissiku juggled with axes in front of the child. Even though Lazarus could see the Methuselah was very good, the boy remained silent as a grave. Malkav was almost in tears:

"Oh… Nissiku, please, cut off your arm."

"Which one?"

"One you use the least."

Nissiku chopped off his left arm. The Bride said to Johann:

"See? Blood! Doesn't look yum-yum?"

No reaction. Malkav said:

"What does a boy like you want? You have blood aplenty, carnage… what more could you want?"

"A normal life, away from the likes of you?"

"It's you, corpse! Your negativity is making the baby uncooperative. Leave!"

"Your brother told me to stay here and stop you if you disturb the boy in any way. A thing you are actively doing."

"Stop me from what, corpse? From feeding my childe?"

Malkav then focused on Lazarus but the Methuselah said:

"Do you think I could have survived for thousands of years in Egypt without strong mental barriers? You are madness made flesh, Antediluvian, but my mind is stronger than your madness."

Malkav hissed:

"We shall see."

Lazarus then said:

"But you know something, madman? Do what you will."

The Cappadocian left the basement and after a while, he fell on his knees, holding his head:

"This… took more than I believed it would."

In the basement, the Bride and her Cainite brother Nissiku tried to make the boy drink but after many tries, they gave up. Malkav said:

"Please, childe, you have to drink."

The boy eventually said:

"The wolves would howl tonight. They will come here. The snake will fight the devil itself and live…"

"My baby! Well… your uncle is very resilient, unfortunately."

"No devil will kill the serpent, but the dead man."

"You'll die too, father."

Malkav smiled:

"You really know everything."

 **Victoria, British Columbia, Canada**

The woman's ears almost burst when she approached the city: the music, the noise and the vehicles, all of this foreign to her. She already missed the forest and the companionship of the savage beasts. The woman felt him approaching, or rather… it. Before her, a large monster that would tower over her looked at her with two red eyes. She smiled, a feral grin that almost brought the beast into submission:

"Hunt with me."

The monster nodded and started to run at breakneck speed, followed by the woman. She did not feel shame for her nakedness, instead enjoying the feeling of the cold air on her body. Deep into the forest, they fought a bear, its blood serving to nourish both of them. She then said:

"What were you doing in that city?"

The beast spoke with a woman's voice:

"Killing a Setite."

"Did you do it?"

"I did. Its blood sated me."

"Careful, my childe, the blood of Sutekh brings only darkness."

"Isn't there so much darkness inside me? What matters a little more?"

"I am glad you don't victimize, but do not underestimate Sutekh's blighted curse. The beast inside you had red eyes. The blood of its creator only roused it more."

"It is fine."

"I felt that madman's ritual with such intensity that almost drove me mad. I can't even imagine what it did to you."

"It was… violent."

"Yet, you are still here. That lunatic and Sutekh killed the Assamite demon worshipper. Your brother told me that Saulot was there too and even the Lasombra and the Cappadocians."

"If they are Sutekh's allies, they must be destroyed."

"Any ally of Sutekh must die but Saulot… there must be a reason he allowed his monster of a brother to get close to him. And this is why I need you. Your brother told me that another one of our blood is there, filled to the brim with Malkavian blood taken from the Child of Dread."

"The one of our blood drank from Nicolaus? Then he is lost to us. Any vampire who drinks from that maniac will go crazy and Malkav's ritual would only make that happen sooner rather than later."

"Go to him. Remind him what he truly is and that he has the power to conquer the new Beast he has in him."

"As you wish."

"I will go to another one of our blood, with the exact problem."

The beast nodded.

 **Alexandria, Egypt**

The booming voice of Set roused his descendants. The Antediluvian then pointed to a young human girl sitting in front of him, dressed in a white gown. He said with glee:

"She is the only daughter of her father's body. He wishes to marry her to an old and rich cleric from Cairo. The father preserved his daughter's purity for nineteen years and he would have continued to do so until the moment it would have been taken by that old fart. However, why should a miserable human have something so delicious? Why not us?"

Set approached the girl and said:

"Are you ready to receive the most beautiful gift of them all?"

"I am, Divine One!"

"Look at her, children! She is willing; she comes to us begging to receive the gift. She wishes to get married! But… where is the bridegroom? And the father? Get them in!"

Two vampires brought two elderly human individuals in that hall, both of them tied with rope and with gags in mouths. The vampire gathering laughed at them. Set said:

"Now, now, cutie, look at daddy!"

"Hello, father."

"Mhmmmm!"

"Remove that from his mouth!"

"Adiva! Adiva, what happened? Who are they?"

Set said:

"They are the army of God! Moreover, I am God!"

"The only god is Allah, blasphemer!"

"I am older than him, thus I am the true God… Hetiptah! Come forth!"

A tall, bald, tanned and muscular man descended towards Set, kneeling before him and saying:

"Divine One."

"Hetiptah killed two Camarilla Alastors! Two of them, gone! He shall be celebrated tonight. And what better way to celebrate him than allowing him to taste the ripeness of this fruit in front of us?"

The vampires exploded in applauses. Adiva's father said:

"You… you will not rape my daughter!"

"Rape? Who said anything about rape? She wants it! She craves it! Tell your father, sweetheart, do you want to be taken and made a goddess by Hetiptah?"

"Yes!"

"See? She chose but then again… I think it is the first and only choice she truly made in her life… Begin, Hetiptah!"

The Setite ripped the girl's gown, exposing her body to the entire congregation of Cainites. Set was ecstatic, dancing around the bed while the father was screaming. Hetiptah then plunged his face in Adiva's nether regions. Only a trickle of blood would fall on her thigh. Set then killed the girl's fiancée by drinking his blood. Soon after, Adiva fell down. The Antediluvian approached the father and said:

"Watch what the power of a true god is capable of! Do it, Hetiptah!"

The other Cainite bit his wrist and dropped vitae in the dead girl's mouth. She then awakened, to the father's horror. Set said:

"Welcome to your new life!"

Adiva then jumped over the bed, reaching her father and drinking from him. Set said:

"Isn't it perfect? The first drops blood she takes as a Godly Child is exactly from the one who gave her the human life…"

Suddenly, the girl's head fell off her shoulders, her sire's too. The vampires screamed but Set remained calm:

"That's a record, I think. Twenty seconds spent as a vampire… Welcome, Troile…"

The Brujah Methuselah who stole his Antediluvian status and blood from his sire was shaking in front of Set, as savage as an animal, craving for vitae as a mare in heat craving for horse prick.

"I heard you were in the area, diablerist. You left a bloody trail all over the coast. I heard you drained almost five thousand people. Wow. I'm impressed. What happened, Troile? Normal vitae can't get yours up?"

Troile attacked Set but the serpent struck him so hard, sending him into a wall.

"Leave us, children."

Before Troile could react, the entire congregation left the room, leaving Set and the Brujah Antediluvian there.

"Alright, Troile, let's talk…"

 **Istanbul, Turkey**

"Traitors… demons…"

"You know, I was trying to keep you alive. Now, you insulted me. You'll die!"

Gratiano finished the prince of Istanbul with his new sword, a Japanese katana. He then looked at the throne room and said:

"Looks like the cleaning lady has a lot of work to do."

The Lasombra then sat on the prince's throne, waiting for a signal from his Antediluvian partner. Not one, but three people arrived in the room at the Topkapi Palace: Saulot, Michael and a monstrous being. Gratiano said:

"Put some fucking clothes on you, man."

"I am Michael!"

"And I am Gratiano the Lasombra, but you don't see me flaunt my… shit in front of people."

"No clothes are worthy of the Father."

"Oh, you're one of them… why the hell I'm interacting only with guys like that?"

The monster snarled:

"And you're the Dracon."

The Tzimisce nodded. Saulot said:

"We need to talk, Gratiano."


	22. Twisted Desires

**Somewhere near Samara, Russia**

The monstrous woman attacked again, this time slashing through the man with her gigantic claws. She said:

"Fools! If that demon sent you, I will send you back in pieces!"

She noticed that the second man had a belt that contained an explosive device. He ran towards her but her Celerity was superior and she managed to behead him before he could detonate the bomb. The third man tried to shoot her but his arm got cut off before he could pull the trigger. The woman said:

"I will drain you, filth!"

She opened her mouth that contained a myriad of barb like teeth and with it, she tore at his throat, draining him and killing him. After she fed, the woman said:

"Come here, demon!"

From the depth of the forest, the boy attacked her, putting her to the ground. She said:

"Foolish boy, he will destroy us all!"

He did not speak. Instead, he took out a large blade and stabbed the woman in the shoulder. She then plunged her claws into the boy's heart.

"An illusion, eh?"

Even though the boy was an illusion, her wound was real.

"Stupid, puny little boy. I was at this long before you were even shat into creation!"

She then raised her clawed right hand and said:

"Come!"

A large army of strange creatures came from the shadows: they were men but with chicken legs and instead of mouths, beaks of steel. They managed to quickly dispel the illusion. The woman said:

"Come to granny!"

 **Paris, France**

"Antediluvian, do you know what happens in Alexandria?"

"I do. The snake battles the devil himself."

"To think your brother wants to help Set… If I were him, I would have let them kill each other off."

"My feelings exactly. Though my brother the Saintly One went to help him. Set is undeserving of help. I worry."

"Do not worry about him. That Michael fellow is with him."

"Oh, but I do worry. Beshter is a snake just as big as Set. He will betray Saulot."

"I think Saulot can handle Michael and his Tzimisce boyfriend. Now, leave the room."

"Again? You are exactly like that corpse Lazarus."

"No, I am not like him. Now, leave!"

"You insolent brat!"

Malkav left, knowing that killing Gratiano would draw the ire of the already angry Saulot. He kissed Johann on the forehead and left, leaving his childe and the Lasombra alone. A few minutes after, Gratiano said:

"You didn't deserve this, you know?"

The boy looked him straight in the eye. It made the Methuselah uncomfortable.

"Your sire was angry you didn't drink blood. You should, though. Without it, you'll wither away and die."

No answer. Gratiano continued:

"Blood is the fuel that gives us power. Without it, we are weak. Without it, we perish."

Again, no answer. The Methuselah said:

"I truly believe what the madman did to you was messed up. Cainites should not Embrace children. Children are liabilities. One of the Sabbat named Velya fell in love with a young girl who murdered her entire family. I know, it's gross. Still, we Cainites are beings of passion and when we crave something, we take it, regardless of consequences. Now, the girl was driven mad by her existence as a Tzimisce so she fell to the Beast. What did Velya do? He… fused their bodies together. Now, that's like twenty tons of fucked up."

Again, the boy didn't answer. Gratiano was pleased that he was silent. Too many of the Brotherhood talked too much. He had some peace and quiet, for once. He continued:

"Anyway, I would never Embrace a child. My childe Sebastian was a young adult when I took him and he's still acting like a spoiled brat. Imagine if he would have been a child."

No answer.

"You know, you are really talented with that violin… when you're not trying to rip people to shreds with it. I knew a boy like you when I was still in Italy. I even remember his name: Paolo. He lived in Venice. Every Toreador in Italy wanted to Embrace him. They schemed and schemed and, in the end, he died of the plague. One Torrie even frenzied like all hells when she heard about the kid's death. Fucking Torries…"

No answer.

"You are silent like a descendant to one of my… deceased brothers. His name was Enrico Fianna but changed his name to Raphael, as the angel. He then infiltrated this monastery in Switzerland and managed to convince each monk that he is truly Raphael. He ghouled them all. Guess what they did…"

No answer.

"They killed each other out of jealousy, of course, like ghouls tend to do, especially blood-bound ghouls."

The boy then moved towards Gratiano. The Lasombra was surprised to see that Johann didn't try to attack him but just to touch his forehead. Suddenly, Gratiano wasn't in the basement anymore but in a cozy house. The Methuselah then took out his katana, expecting trouble but instead of enemies, he found humans. A man wearing glasses and a woman who wore a green dress. On a chair near them, Johann sat, surrounded by several other children. In front of them was a large cake and a few of them were singing Happy Birthday. The Italian counted the candles on the cake: seven. The Lasombra leader knew then: it was Johann's final birthday spent with his family, final birthday as a human being. Then, he returned to the basement and said:

"Why did you show me this?"

No answer.

Gratiano closed his eyes and sighed. He then said:

"I have no beautiful memories from when I was alive. Or… maybe I have, but mine are much darker than yours. I didn't celebrate any birthday with cake nor had children sing to me. But I lied a lot and manipulated a lot. One day, I killed someone for being in my way and the authorities caught me. They beat the shit out of me, trying to make me confess. Then, he appeared. He said he could take all of that away, that he could remake me into something greater than anything I could have hoped. He did that, to his credit. He turned me into a monster. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. I was a monster before that, believe me."

Again, no answer. Gratiano smiled and said:

"Here I am, pouring my black heart out to a Malk kid. I am crazier than you, I think."

The Italian picked up his coat and tried to leave the basement. Johann said:

"Your father tried to kill you."

"He did."

"You tried to kill him, too."

"I did."

"Why?"

"Because that's who we are. I was in chains, child, and Lasombra had the key. _Bow before your elders, bow before the king, bow before the Pope, bow, bow, bow._ In undeath as in life. No more, I said. No more. He blood-bound us. He believed that by doing so, we will stay loyal. Oh, no, no. Not me!"

"But you failed. You killed your brother instead."

"I did."

"Don't you regret?"

"No. I am not my brother's keeper."

As Gratiano was approaching the door, he stopped and said:

"Your dark father is a piece of shit just as big as my own sire. You'd do well to plan his demise if you wish to be free."

"He will die."

The Lasombra Methuselah smiled and said:

"If you plan to do the deed yourself, make sure you don't fail."

Gratiano eventually reached his room and inside, he had a guest: a beautiful woman dressed in a long, black gown. She said:

"Hello, Gratiano."

"Portia."

"Oh, please, do not call me by that name again."

"Helena."

"To hear my name again… it's quite refreshing."

"If you want refreshment, you can find blood dolls at the bar."

"Oh, but I need a favor from you."

"Really?"

"Yes. You see, Menele and me, we decided to bury the hatchet for a while until this Tremere thing disappears. Until then, I have to ally myself with those whom I believe will win. The problem is my clan does not want to leave the Camarilla. This is why in order to succeed you need powerful individuals from clan Toreador to… even the scales."

"Do you have anyone in mind?"

"I might. See, one of the fourth generation Toreadors has this mad hatred against his childe. Now, he found out where he is but he's untouchable. This Methuselah now poses as a porn director in a sleazy studio in Fresno. Get him on board and make him forget his damned hatred."

"Who is the man?"

"I knew him as Gilead but since the Middle Ages, he calls himself Sir Matthew Lubbock."

"I heard about him. One of the first Toreador in the New World."

"Yes."

"Why don't you convince him to join us?"

"Me and him… we are not friends."

"You diablerized his brother, of course he hates you."

"Yes… some people have this brotherly love… but not you."

"Not me."

"So, will you go?"

"I will."

Gratiano left his room and went straight for Beckett's:

"Grab your things and let's go."

"Where?"

"Fresno."

"Oh, for fuck's sake…"

"You need to continue your activities in order to keep the Passenger in check. Staying there only makes you weaker and him stronger."

Beckett sighed.

 **Fresno, California, United States, a night later**

The Toreador Methuselah spoke so much about the scenario that Gratiano became bored. He eventually asked, knowing he would regret it afterwards:

"So, friend, what is the scenario?"

Lubbock then said details about his work in a deep British accent:

"The name of the movie is: White-Collar TTs"

"I understand."

"Okay, so, see that girl over there?"

Gratiano looked at the young woman dressed in a business outfit, carrying her laptop. The Methuselah nodded.

"So, she is this crazy workaholic-like bitch, you know? Work, work, work, work. Real professional. Now, she hasn't been fucked in three years."

"Three?"

"Three. Anyway, she leaves her office, you know, at 10 PM after she did overtime. She goes to this bar, you know? To blow off some steam. And this midget guy is staring right at her. He buys her a drink, you know? All that. And then, they go to the restroom and he fucks her bloody and I mean literally. I have like three gallons of pig blood in the back."

"So… let me get this straight: this workaholic who hasn't been fucked in three years suddenly wants to be fucked bloody by some midget in a bar?"

"Yes!"

"I don't think you'll win any awards with that shit."

"What? Why not?"

"It's not relatable, for crying out loud! You want to shock and to be edgy? Do not turn it into a snuff film. Make it believable!"

"And how would you do that? I'm the artist, you know?"

"Yeah, an artist with no imagination. Now, this skank you want to pass for a workaholic? There is no way that hot thing would stay unfucked for three years. Make her a suburban soccer mom. A really hot soccer mom."

"We can't have kids in it, you know? And besides, is White-Collar TTs not Suburbia Pussy."

"Say they're in summer camp or whatnot. Now, her husband is this average guy: average job, average intelligence and, the worst thing in the world: no qualities in bed whatsoever. Now, your soccer mom is hungry for it, you know? Craving to fuck. Her useless hubby can't get it up unless he pops like a whole flacon of Viagra. He barely even gave her kids. She's unhappy because of this. So a friend of hers told her about this guy she's seeing sometimes: cool, tanned and very, very big!"

"Interesting. Then what?"

"Then the mom goes to this guy and he gives her the time of her life."

"Goodness gracious… Now, I have to cast one of those Negros with big dicks. I would tell the midget to fuck off but… I already paid him $1000. I'll give him 1000 more just to see him off."

"Why would you tell the midget to go? Use him. Or is he small down there too?"

"No, of course not, but you said a cool, tanned and very big guy. That's a midget to you?"

"Yeah, if you build him up like that. He is big… where it matters. Now, this cock-hungry bitch goes into the hotel room and sees the midget. Of course, her first reaction would be _you have to be shitting me_ but the little monster is a fuck machine. You would have… hard-hitting action and taboo stuff. I mean, she's a church going lady and all that and he's a deformed little shit who lives only to satisfy woman with his ungodly large prick."

"I guess White-Collar TT's is off the table… I have to think of a different name…"

"What about "No Hole Left Unfucked?"

"I like it. Bold, vulgar… I think I have a winner here."

Gratiano sighed again:

"You know, you should enter the business."

"I'm already involved in other kinds of business, so no thanks."

He then said:

"Now that I helped you, you shall help me too."

"Uh, I knew help from you wouldn't come free. Tell me: what do you want?"

"I want you to join us."

"What? The Brotherhood? No way. Fuck you, guys."

"Why is that?"

"You lads want to kill the Tremere. I need the Tremere."

"For what?"

"My main distributor is a Tremere ghoul. Not only he maintains the website and sells the tapes and CDs but he also provides me with actors for my… special orders."

"What special orders?"

"There are some powerful and influential people who like to get off on strange and unusual porn, you know?"

"Fucking pedos."

"No, not pedos. If they were pedos, then it would have been easier. Kidnap a fucking tramp, make him look presentable and then do that shit but no, these guys are fucking nuts, man!"

"How so?"

"Ugh… for example, two weeks ago, an order came from a governor that he wants to see hentai."

"So what? Get some Asian girls and…"

"Live hentai. I mean, like, live tentacle hentai."

"What?"

"Yeah. And I said to the guy: how the fuck I'm going to CGI that shit? And he said: no CGI."

"So what have you done?"

"Now, I could have said no. But he gave me a million dollars in advance. I wouldn't say no to that. So my ghoul producer had his boss import this giant squid from Jamaica. Fuck, I think it was as big as me."

"I don't want to hear the rest. So, you are telling me you can't join us because the Tremere give you shit to do smut with?"

"Yes. That's right."

"For fuck's sake… Listen, I know what you truly want. You want to kill your childe, that's right?"

"I see it's common knowledge. Yes, I want to do that."

"Then I'll help you do it and then you join. And I'll give you money to do your shit."

"I don't need money as much as I need resources."

"Done. But I'm not giving you kids."

"I told you, they are not into kids. Hold on, I have a list right here."

Sir Matthew pulled out a piece of paper and gave it to Gratiano. The Lasombra said, after reading it:

"For fuck's sake, this can't be real… White tigers? Come on."

"One Night in Bengal… The tiger is for ONB 2…"

"What about… uh… _electric eels_?"

"They're for Horny Poseidon 3. The first two we did with rubber tubes with electrical wires inside. The clients didn't like them."

"I'll… try to supply you. Tell me where your childe is."

"Los Angeles. He has a thing for actors."

"I'll be in touch."

Gratiano left. At the exit door, Beckett was shivering.

"What is wrong with you? Did seeing snatch frightened you?"

"No… it's… my head is burning."

"Have you fed?"

"Yes."

"Good. Don't go hungry. If the Beast is strong, Nicolaus is strong too."

"I… feel like he's scratching my brains with his claws… damn!"

"You need to burn up all that energy pent up inside you. Go to Los Angeles and get it off there."

"For what?"

"Murder. I need you to kill a vampire named Christopher."

"Lubbock's childe? Fuck no; I had enough of vampire children."

"Fuck yes, you will. It is the only way to get the Meth on board. Besides, it will do you well to… appease the monster, you know?"

"Come with me."

"No can do, I'll go to Europe."

"For what?"

"I'll go to Vienna."

"For what? I can't imagine you'll go for music."

"Exactly for music I'm going. Now, rent a car and go to LA. Kill the fucker during the day to make it nice and easy. Or you could stay here, if you want. I heard the Toreador saying that he needs an extra fluffer."

"Shit… fine, I'll do it."

"Good."

Gratiano then entered his car and drove away, leaving Beckett alone. The Gangrel felt much safer when in the presence of Gratiano. He felt that the Lasombra Methuselah could somehow keep Nicolaus at bay. The Noddist took out his phone and called a car renting service.

 **Alexandria, Egypt**

The firefighters tried to extinguish the fires, but to no avail. At least, the military managed to evacuate the more populated neighborhoods. Across Lake Mariout, to the south, Set was pummeling Troile, hitting him with his fists.

"I will plunge this world into the depths of hell!"

"No, I will plunge this world into my Paradise! A paradise of endless satisfaction of senses!"

The night sky then illuminated. A ray of light hit Troile and burned his face."

Saulot appeared, flanked by Michael who was wearing a white toga-like cloak and the Dracon who grew up two more arms, each of them wielding blades of bone. The Brujah Antediluvian said:

"It seems the Black One smiles upon me tonight. I will kill you too."

"My brother! You couldn't resist, could you?"

"I came here to save you, brother. What is that destruction in the city? What atrocities did you two wrought upon this land?"

Troile smirked.


	23. Tchernabog

**Vienna, Austria, a day later**

Gratiano was strolling through the avenues of the city wearing his black suit and a raincoat and, of course, his sunglasses. On his head he had a black fedora and in his right hand, a cane. Underneath his coat, the Italian vampire had an envelope, which he took out and looked at the contents: a map, several pictures of ID cards and some letters. Walking another five hundred meters, he was then in front of a house. The Methuselah used Auspex and noticed only the woman was at home. Gratiano then turned into a shadow and entered the house through the opened window. He noticed there were no mirrors or other reflective surfaces in the lobby. He then returned outside and used the doorbell. A few moments later, a woman opened the door. She was thin, with eyes sunken like a corpse's, her visage reminding Gratiano of Lazarus. He spoke in German:

"Good day. My name is Victor Narholz and I am a private investigator."

"Good day. I'm afraid I don't understand."

Gratiano took out his fake ID card and showed it to the woman. He then said:

"I'm working for the Eye 3 Agency, an international detective company that seeks lost persons, even after the police gave up the search."

"Oh, God… Come in, please!"

Gratiano entered the house and sat on a couch. The woman said:

"Do you want something? Coffee, cookies?"

"No, thank you."

She sat on an armchair near him. Gratiano said:

"Your son disappeared about four years ago, according to my files."

"He did, Mr. Narholz. He was playing one evening in our courtyard and then, he was gone. No one saw what happened."

"If it's not too much for you, can you describe me that moment? What happened? Did you see anyone?"

"Johann returned with his dad from the violin lessons. He was so happy that day… He was to open a very important concert in Geneva later that year. He just found out… my baby… he ate his favorite meal and then he went outside to play. One moment he was there, playing with his ball and then… he was gone. They took my baby…"

Gratiano looked at the woman with his dead eyes. He would have felt sorrow but he was an undead blood drinker. There is no room for sorrow in his dead heart.

"It's alright. I understand you."

"You do."

"Yes, I do. I… lost something important too."

"I see. This is why you want to find my son?"

Gratiano then sighed, but his sigh was subtle, almost inaudible. What was he supposed to say to this mother? That he lost his humanity? That he was a damned being, cursed forever to drink blood and kill others? And the worst part of it is that her beloved child became a monster like him, too? He could only say:

"Yes."

"Wait here, detective Narholz."

Gratiano looked at the TV in the living room. He could not see himself, of course. He hoped that the woman would not notice. She returned with a picture:

"This is the last picture I took of my child. Three days before he disappeared."

The child was dressed with a white shirt, a black bow tie and a black suit similar to the one Gratiano was wearing at that point. But there was something about his face that stirred a strange feeling in the Methuselah: his lively eyes, now dead. Gratiano suddenly grabbed the photo and closed his eyes. He thought:

 _Fuck you, Malkav. Fuck you a thousand times._

"Can I keep this? It would help me on my investigation?"

"Of course. I have a thousand copies in my computer. Thank you, Mr. Narholz."

"Can I see the boy's room? Unless it doesn't exist anymore…"

"Of course it exists. When he returns, he will stay there. But I think he would want to take down the teddy bear wallpaper. He would be a big boy."

The woman led Gratiano de Veronese to a room upstairs. He said:

"I must go alone… to gather evidence. I promise, I will be respectful."

"Of course, take as much time as you want."

Gratiano entered. That room was Johann's small universe: a violin on the wall, beautiful clothes on the bed, his little place where he kept his toys. The Methuselah then approached a wall on which every trophy and diploma of Johann was posted. Above it, a large picture of the boy, similar to the one given by the mother to Gratiano, loomed. The Lasombra then touched the violin with his cold fingers but his eyes noticed a small envelope on the bed table. He opened it:

 _"Dear Santa, for this Christmas, bring me a Transformers action figure and a bicycle. For mom and dad, bring them a new coffee machine so that they stop being angry with the old one. Love, Johann"_

Suddenly the piece of paper became bloody. Vitae fell from somewhere. Gratiano knew the source… his own eyes. He then folded the paper and took it with him. After that, he wiped the blood from his face with his black handkerchief. He had no idea if he wiped it all, but he left the room. The woman said:

"Did you get anything from there?"

"Yes, a letter to Santa. We may be able to trace the handwriting, to see if it appeared anywhere else after the disappearance."

"Oh, God, I know you will find him. You are my last hope."

Gratiano said goodbye and left the house. He walked for hours until he reached a park. He sat on a bench and muttered to himself, while looking at the bloody letter:

"I… I am sorry. I am so sorry. I had no idea… I never thought the madman would do such a thing."

He then raised his eyes to the sky and said with a whispery voice:

"Fuck you. Fuck you for allowing us to exist in this world. Fuck you for letting bloodthirsty cunts tear through your children. You motherfucker! You piece of shit. If you exist truly, make that boy a human again and reunite him with his family. If not, fuck you, fuck you!"

It was night. The Italian entered a bar and fed on a waiter he lured in the bathroom. Then, he saw the dire news from Alexandria on the bar's TV: the city was almost destroyed and no one knew what happened. He knew what happened. He then left, returning to the park. Gratiano then looked upwards again and said:

"See what Cainites are doing?"

Gratiano's anger then turned to pure hatred as he used Celerity to approach a man and then grab him by his throat. The man used Celerity too to escape. That individual said:

"Easy there… brother. You will break the Masquerade."

"You!"

In front of Gratiano stood a tall man wearing a black turtleneck and a dark brown leather jacket. He had short white hair and pale skin.

"Hello, Gratiano."

"Weren't you dead?"

"Dead? Oh, yes, I suppose I was. No, I wasn't dead."

"Stop joking and tell me what do you want."

"Easy there, brother. I want to talk."

"About what?"

"About your… affiliation with Saulot and his ilk."

"I don't see why that is a topic of discussion."

"But it is. When you killed and diablerized our Sire, you swore that Clan Lasombra shall never bow before anyone again. Yet, now, more than three quarters of our people joined Antediluvians."

"I guess being able to live underneath that bright, yellow star is something that more than three quarters of our people want."

"But at what cost? Being hitmen and errand boys for Antediluvians?"

"It seems you really miss the point, brother. However, let me remind you that under our dead Father, we were worse than slaves."

"Our clan was stable. We were ruled by a single will that drove us forward. Then you took that away from us."

"And I made us great. Our clan is the clan of kings, more so than the Ventrue. Kings are ruled by no one, just as our clan is not ruled by its Antediluvian primogenitor."

"Do you think you are free, Gratiano?"

"More so than you, Boukephos. Saulot doesn't bend my clan to his will, he doesn't enforce his might upon us. We chose to ally with him just as we allied with the Tzimisce to form the Sabbat in the past."

"You have no idea what your master brought upon this earth, brother."

"Oh but I know."

"A new age will come upon this land, brother, an age of eternal darkness for we are creatures of the dark, not the light. You are one of the most powerful of our clan, you can rule the entire world if you wish."

"But I don't. I don't want to rule anything."

"I understand. It seems you underestimate me, brother. I guess a taste of what's to come is necessary."

Boukephos disappeared, leaving Gratiano behind. The Italian wondered what his Methuselah brother meant by that.

 **Paris, France**

Petaniqua's hand shook on the pencil but she recomposed herself and started to draw. The Malkavian elder then said:

"Alexander, would you like me to draw you a little bird? Or a rabbit?"

"Rabbit is well. Thank you, mother."

Malkav frowned at Johann and said:

"This demon should not be treated with kindness but with the utmost disgust."

Johann didn't say anything to his sire but instead smiled at the former queen of Macedonia:

"You have tears on your cheeks, mother."

Johann then wiped the blood on Petaniqua's cheek. She said:

"I… I am happy. Happy to have you by my side again, not… trapped into that corpse with that madman."

"I am well now."

"I can see that, my son!"

Nissiku approached Petaniqua and said:

"Maybe you can convince your son to drink. Ever since he was brought into the family, he hasn't drank a single drop."

"What? Why? Alexander, you will die again without it."

"I'm fine without it."

"You're not. Come on, a drink for your mama?"

Petaniqua took the blood bag and put it near the boy's mouth.

"One sip? Please?"

The boy relented and drank a bit. After that, his eyes opened wide and he shouted:

"Darkness is coming!"

 **Ruins of Alexandria, Egypt**

No one dwelled in the damned city but those who destroyed it. The battle raged on, tearing the remaining buildings apart. Many died before the evacuation and now, their corpses littered the battlefield. Set was on top of a tower, boasting:

"Where are you, Troile? Are you afraid of my might?"

Saulot stood on a steel beam, shocked by the chaos created by his brother and the other Antediluvians. Michael and the Dracon engaged Troile who managed to physically dominate them for a while but now, the Tzimisce had the upper hand, pummeling the Brujah Antediluvian. Soon after, Troile said:

"You will swallowed by the darkness. All of you!"

He disappeared. Set shriked:

"Come back, coward! Let's end this!"

"He's gone, brother."

Set then went insane, proceeding to devastate the building he was sitting on. Saulot used Celerity to grab and immobilize the Antediluvian:

"Let me go! I will tear him to shreds!"

"We need to find him, brother. Come."

Set nodded.

 **Somewhere in Austria**

Blood trickled from the mouth of Gratiano. Ghoul blood tasted the best, especially when the ghoul was a Camarilla one. Ever since he left Vienna, he torched five Camarilla havens, killing almost a dozen sleeping vampires. Now, he was looking for the sixth. He reached a cave, and inside, he found many computers and servers. Using his Auspex, he detected many Nosferatu vampires hidden by Obfuscate. One of them said in German:

"Please, hear us out! We need your help!"

"Come again? You do realize that I came here to, you know, kill you?"

"Yes, exactly!"

The Nosferatu left Obfuscate. All of them were deformed and terribly ugly. The Lasombra Methuselah said:

"So… you want me to kill you?"

"Yes… We can't go outside into the sun. If we could, we would have done it ourselves but now… please, kill us!"

"Generally, whenever I meet a Camarilla, he begs me NOT to kill him."

"Something prowls these woods. Something… monstrous. We can't left it claim us. Kill us already."

"Ah, well… If everyone I kill would be so cooperative…"

After a few minutes, each Nosferatu lied dead. Gratiano de Veronese then approached one of the computers and proceeded to search the databases for something. After a while, the leader of the Brotherhood got what he wanted.

Before dawn, the Lasombra kicked down a door in a village on the bank of the Danube. A young man jumped from his bed and tried to attack Gratiano with a piece of wood but he was no match for his infinitely more powerful opponent. Gratiano said:

"Kurt Graff, nice to meet you."

"Who… are you?"

"Why don't you ask your Tremere paymasters who am I?"

"What? What are you talking about?"

Kurt's wife appeared with a knife in hand.

"Honey, run, run!"

Gratiano then used his Dominate to paralyze her temporarily. He then said:

"You are Johann's uncle. His mother's brother. And you betrayed your family by selling the boy to the Tremere."

"Tre… what?"

"Do not lie or I will make your wife cut her own tits with that knife! You know about us, otherwise you wouldn't have attacked me with sharp wood."

"I… I had no choice!"

"You had choices aplenty!"

"They… they said they will kill my wife if I don't give them the boy."

"So it was you who lured him from his home…"

"Yes… he loved me…"

"He loved you, you piece of shit, and yet you sold him to be used as fuel for devilish rituals!"

Gratiano then punched Kurt in the stomach and then approached his wife. The Italian said:

"If I torture and kill her, it would be too easy… oh, no, no, no… But if I destroy her love for you? Oh… that would be gas!"

Under her husband's horrified eyes, the woman was then fed blood from Gratiano's wrist. She opened her eyes and suddenly, she fell tremendous adoration for the dark assailant that attacked her husband. Gratiano said:

"Your wife now loves me and only me."

He then said to the wife while handing her a revolver:

"See that husband of yours? He cheated on you… with a young girl… only twelve."

"Honey! No, it's not true!"

The adoration turned into anger as she shot her husband in the gut, wounding him. The Lasombra said:

"Hell has no fury like a woman scorned."

He left the house and after that, he heard three more gunshots. Suddenly, he looked at the sky. Instead of becoming more and more luminous, it darkened more and more. Using Celerity, Gratiano ascended a cliff and saw the sun becoming blacker and blacker. He sighed.

 **Somewhere in Northern Africa**

Three vampires stood near a burning brazier that emitted black smoke, so thick that blackened the firmament itself. One of them was Troile, the other was Boukephos. The third one was the Cainite who posed as Montano for hundreds of years: Lasombra himself. He said:

"Now, with your unholy blood, the entire world will fall at the feet of the true god. Darkness."

Troile laughed hysterically. The air became colder and colder as the sky darkened.


	24. Baba Yaga: Shadows in the Night

**Somewhere in the Land of Nod, approx.7000 years ago**

The desert was unforgiving, especially for the young children. Two died that day, four the day before. The road ahead was even more dangerous as there was little to no water for miles. The old woman approached a tall, dark skinned man and said:

"We should make camp until nightfall."

"Agreed."

The man then ordered one of his warriors to stop the caravan. A thousand men and women left their villages to migrate across the Land of Nod, among them an old woman, the healer of the group. She spent the time since they left their homes patching wounds, delivering children into the world and making medicine. A few hours later, someone enter her tent and said:

"Quickly, Rashada is giving birth!"

The old woman nodded and left for the largest tent. Inside, many women were sitting around a bed, on which the young wife of the chieftain was giving birth. The powerful warrior said:

"What is happening to her?"

"Do not worry. Every woman goes through that."

She then looked at Rashada's belly and said:

"The child is not in a good position for birth."

The chieftain then grabbed the old woman by the throat and said:

"If my son dies, I will drown you in the Euphrates! Do your magics, witch!"

The woman nodded and she started to prepare her mixtures and say her incantations. At dawn, the child was born but unfortunately, his mother lied dead inside the tent. The chieftain was rabid:

"My Rashada… I will have your head for this, witch! Useless crone!"

He struck the woman and she fell, breaking her arm. She cried in pain but the chieftain continued to hit her. One of his warriors stopped him saying:

"She failed but she saved many before that. She should not die!"

Another said:

"I agree. She saved my father when that scorpion stung him."

The chieftan then said:

"Very well. Give her food and water to last her a fortnight. Be gone!"

The wounded woman was escorted outside the camp, despite the people's pleas. The mournful chieftain refused to let her even heal her broken arm. Days and nights passed. The food ended a day before. She noticed she had water only for a couple more days. She was in pain, a one-armed woman in the Land of Nod. At dusk, she moved again, travelling aimlessly though the desert. At midnight, she noticed an animal sleeping on the sand. She couldn't tell what it was. She took out her dagger and tried to approach it but it took off. Soon after, she saw the animal falling. It was struck by an arrow. The woman saw the hunter approaching, his beautiful face gleaming underneath the moonlight. He was almost perfect, save for a scar on his neck. Suddenly, the hunter appeared before her. She screamed but calmed down after seeing the dark brown eyes of the man. His bare chest reminded her of pleasures long forgotten. Her arm stopped hurting. He then bit his wrist and said to her:

"Drink."

He was insane. How could she possibly drink blood? Only savages and beasts do that. But it was an overwhelmingly powerful force that pulled her towards this stranger. She drank, feeling herself with glee and a happiness that she never felt before. The aches in her old body started to disappear. She felt she was in heaven. The hunter smiled and said:

"Come with me."

"Where?"

"Home."

The last thing she remembered was his teeth on her neck.

The first nights as an immortal vitae drinker were hard for her but soon, she adapted. Ever since the man, who called himself Absimiliard, brought her into the Blood, she felt herself becoming colder and colder, not just physically but emotionally too. What was a human compared to what she was? Every human she drank from gave her sustenance, nothing else. She didn't enjoy mortal songs anymore, nor mortal food or mortal drink. She wanted only blood and only the sweetest blood gave her any succor: that of Absimiliard. One night, Zillah, Absimiliard's sire and the most beautiful woman in the world, beloved of the Dark Father himself, came to her and said:

"My childe is full of pain. His suffering brings me awful sadness."

"His suffering saddens me too, mistress. But I can't explain why is he in pain? He is beautiful. He is powerful. He can have the world at his feet."

Zillah smiled and said:

"Yet his vanity is what causes him hurt."

Absimiliard's childe knew the source of his vanity. Her sire's desire for perfection was stronger than his common sense. Zillah continued:

"Try to make him see reason."

So she tried. For centuries. She told him he was perfect, she told him she was beautiful, akin to a god. She told him that there is no one like him under the moonlit sky. But he never listened. He viewed himself as ugly, hating himself just like he hated her. Why did he Embrace her, she didn't know, but now, they were stuck with one another. After her grandsire left, he entered.

"Master."

"What was she doing in here?"

"She was concerned about you."

"Was she? She should have been concerned when she did THIS to me."

He pointed at the scar on his neck. The woman said:

"It is barely visible, master."

Absimiliard was incensed. He struck his childe with such a force that almost tore her jaw off. He then grabbed her by the hair and said:

"It's barely visible, you say? Look at it! LOOK AT IT!"

She did. Absimiliard was like that, sometimes. She knew she should not have spoken. That angered her sire. The Antediluvian then left. She remained behind, suffering but at the same time, feeling like she already forgave him.

 **The Land of Nod, more than 2000 years later**

As the months and years turned to centuries and later to millennia, she became cold and empty. There was nothing in her life but blood and Absimiliard, maybe except the long sessions of talks she had with Zillah the Beautiful. She was walking through the city in the dead of night, wandering without any specific destination. Suddenly, she heard screams from one of the houses. She knew that wanton torture would draw the ire of the Dark Father so she went in, trying to stop what was happening. Instead, she saw a woman on a bed, giving birth. The Cainite approached her and said:

"Is there no one to help you?"

"No…"

She closed her eyes and remembered: in the grand palace, the human queen was giving birth and Haqim ordered all the midwives in the city to come and assist.

"Where is your man?"

"He's… gathering fruit… argh!"

"In the middle of the night? He left you alone, that one."

"It's… argh… to hot during the day."

"I see. I shall help you."

"Thank… you…"

Every scream was an expression of the woman's pain but the childe of Absimiliard felt nothing. Or maybe… she felt something. She felt the smell of fresh blood invading her nostrils, the only pleasure she can feel since Absimiliard turned her thousands of years ago. But, as the pleasure grew, the dark hunger grew too. The sight of blood drove her almost to the point of insanity. She then licked her finger and felt the Beast backing off for a bit. The pregnant woman's expression was one of horror: she was in pain but her fear was more of her immortal helper. The vampire then calmed down. The labor was hard but eventually, a boy was born. She immediately left. Outside the house, Absimiliard was waiting for her, his eyes filled with rage:

"After so much time, are you still clinging to your mortal feelings?"

"No, master."

"Then?"

"The number of children of Set in our City must be replenished if they are to fulfil our needs."

"True. We need blood. But noble blood, from the veins of people of the most exalted stock not the filth in that spawn's veins."

"Blood is blood, master."

The master struck her:

"Do not teach me about blood, cur. Come with me."

They left.

 **Several years later…**

She looked in the lake to see her face again and she was frightened by its visage: iron teeth, skin like a lizard's, white eyes and rotting flesh. However, she looked far better than Absimiliard. Her sire was now covering himself completely, leaving only his eyes out. Her other dark siblings looked like monsters too. She said to her master:

"You are a monster now, beloved master. It mirrors your black soul."

"Shut your mouth, whore!"

"I will not. Because of you, we all suffer. We can't show our faces to the world anymore. We are twice cursed now, by death and by this… putrid curse you brought upon us. The Dark Father punished us because of you!"

"I will not have you speak about him again!"

"You destroyed me!"

"I made you immortal. Why only the pure and the beautiful should be cursed by undeath? Why not deserving old crones like you, too?

"You destroyed me!"

"You were already destroyed. But… it will not be like this, no, not like this and not for long."

"What do you mean?"

"The torment will end."

"How?"

The monstrous Antediluvian looked at his childe and said:

"By your deaths! You and all others who have my blood."

She froze.

 **Russia, 413 A.D.**

She killed three men that night, draining them of their blood. The next village was close and the night was still young. She slithered in the shadows of Obfuscate and, after a while, entered the village. The first house had only children. A suckling babe and an older boy. She left Obfuscate and tried to drink the baby's blood. A scream interrupted her:

"BABA YAGA!"

Baba Yaga… she heard about this superstition held by foolish peasants. Before she could react, the boy left the house and started to shout in the middle of village:

"BABA YAGA, BABA YAGA, IN THE HOUSE!"

She disappeared, leaving only a dead baby in her wake.

 **Russia, 419 A.D.**

The Tzimisce delivered on his promise and she paid him accordingly. A living, walking house on chicken legs and an entire army of abominations resembling birds with blades instead of wings. She forgot her real name. She was now Baba Yaga.

 **Moscow, Russia, present day**

She opened her white eyes and looked at the old grandfather clock. She realized it was day. But why she was awake? With fear, she left her haven only to discover it was dark, even though it should be the noon. Baba Yaga looked with wonder at the thick shadows covering the skies and a smiled formed on her disgusting mouth. She then said:

"Welcome, brother. Oh, but such a cute appearance. Not like dusty old me…"

A small child with long hair appeared before her. He was silent.

"I heard you call yourself Vasilisa. Well… Baba Yaga should have a foil, right?"

He attacked her with a bony sword and she ducked, using her supreme agility to take the blade from him and slit his throat. Vasilisa dissolved in a mass of black sludge. Baba Yaga said:

"I will not let you run away again. I will hunt you to the ends of the earth."

She went to the city, where desperate people tried to evacuate, crying that the end was near. Some soldiers were telling them that is was simply an eclipse but they were having none of it. The Nosferatu Methuselah then approached a soldier and said:

"Eclipse you say, sweety?"

He left out a cry before being cut in two by the hag and her iron claws. The people started to shake looking at her but Baba Yaga ignored her and said:

"Another one of your illusions, brother? Come out and play with lonely me!"

A reporter was filming her and she said:

"Yes, yes, film me! Film this!"

She pointed to the shadows on the sky.

"Know that this is the work of vampires! Vampires such as me! I am Baba Yaga, your worst fears, your nightmares, the one you talk about only in mad whispers, the one who…"

Vasilisa emerged from the crowd with a scythe, attacking the other Methuselah. Baba Yaga then laughed and charged at the Nictucku, carving a bloody path through the crowd.


End file.
